Newsround: what Thursday's papers say

The top stories in Thursday's newspapers:

THE IRISH TIMES

- The paper reports on the recent thunderstorms that left a trail of destruction across the northwest of the country. It says more than 100 people had to be rescued from cars and houses due to the flooding and authorities on both sides of the border are now estimating the multimillion euro cost of the damage wreaked across Derry, Donegal and Tyrone.

- British proposals to ensure an "invisible" border after Brexit will not be discussed next week when the latest round of negotiations between the EU and the UK get under way in Brussels, the paper says. Brexit talks reconvene in Brussels early next week for the third session of the negotiations.

- The Irish Council for Civil Liberties is to write to the government expressing concerns about the introduction of the public services card. The scheme came in for renewed criticism this week after it emerged that a woman in her 70s had her state pension cut off because she refused to register for a card.

- In its business section, the paper reports that Dutch hedge fund manager Bram Cornelisse is stake-building in Independent News & Media as it continues to deal with the fallout from the extraordinary boardroom bust-up over corporate governance.

FINANCIAL TIMES

- The paper reports that the euro continued to close the gap with sterling yesterday, marking its strongest level against the pound in eight years following positive economic data in the euro zone. The European currency rose above 92 pence with some market watchers predicting there would be parity with the pound before the UK leaves the EU.

- A big drop in marketing spending from some of the world's largest consumer products companies forced leading advertising agency WPP to issue its second sales warning of the year yesterday, sending its shares sharply lower and spooking investors in the sector.

- The British Home Office was forced to admit that it had threatened to deport 100 EU nationals by mistake after a Finnish academic married to a Briton publicised details of her missive on social media. The letter sent by the Home Office notified recipients that "a decision has now been taken to remove you from the United Kingdom" and included a threat of deportation if they did not leave within a month.

- In its Companies & Markets section, the paper reports that Google has changed the way it responds to people who are searching for information on depression and will now invite US users to "check if you're clinically depressed" by using a clinically-validated questionnaire.

IRISH INDEPENDENT

- The paper reports that teachers are set to step up their campaign to end two-tier salaries after a minister broke ranks to back "equal pay for equal work". Minister Mary Mitchell O'Connor has created a major headache for the government by re-igniting the debate over pay just as schools prepare to reopen after the summer break.

- UK prime minister Theresa May insisted Britain will "take back control" of its laws after being accused of a climbdown on axing links with European courts, the paper says. She said it was "absolutely clear" that leaving the EU would mean leaving the authority of the European Court of Justice.

- Conor McGregor's hugely-anticipated fight with Floyd Mayweather is set to be the highest-grossing pay-per-view event of all time. Some 50 million people in the US alone are expected to tune in for the fight in Las Vegas on Saturday night.

- In its business section, the paper reports that Brexit is behind a fivefold increase in the number of Chinese delegations visiting Ireland so far this year. Dublin Chamber said interest had also been expressed from Korea, Indonesia and Singapore as well as the western Balkans and Belgium.

IRISH EXAMINER

- The paper reports that the country will have to brace itself for more extreme weather events as the effect of climate change hits home with potentially devastating effects on property and infrastructure. It says that leading climate change expert Peter Thorne of Maynooth University has warned that the worst effect of global warming have yet to be seen in Ireland.

- The Labour Party has said it would back and campaign for Michael D Higgins if he was to seek a second term as President. The 76-year old has declined to say in public if he will seek another seven-year term but there is growing speculation as to whether he would be challenged if he ran.

- RTÉ must deliver a "maximum level of transparency" in relation to how much it pays its stars like Ryan Tubridy and Ray D'Arcy, Communications Minister Denis Naughten has said. He also said he wanted the station to deliver the best value for money from the resources it gets from the taxpayer.

- Construction workers look set to see their wages rise by about 10 per cent following a decision by government to accept new pay terms for those in the building sector. Junior jobs minister Pat Breen has announced that recommendations by the Labour Court on rates for workers in the sector would be accepted.