D Monday, December 14, 2009 METRO 11 McCanns return to Portugal for visit THE mother of Madeleine McCann said she felt closer to her missing daughter after returning to Praia da Luz for the first time since police wrongly named her as a prime suspect in the case. Kate McCann, who was cleared of any suspicion last year, travelled back to the Portuguese town with her husband Gerry after the libel trial of policeman Goncalo Amaral in Lisbon was unexpectedly delayed. Mr Amarals book The Truth Of The Lie included claims that Madeleine was dead. Infra-red camera to aid tattoo finds INFRA-RED cameras could help solve crimes by finding hidden tattoos. Forensic scientists already look at tattoos as a way of identifying suspects, but they can easily be changed or updated. Now scientists at the University of Derby say infra-red digital cameras could help determine if a tattoo was an original, or if it was a second tattoo covering an older one. Other forensic work trialled at the college includes analysing lipstick left on coffee cups and fingerprints. Costs: The Vatican has a separate embassy Picture: AP Snow-StylIng In Seoul Irish embassies in expenses spotlight OPERATING two embassies in Italy is costing the Irish taxpayer 2.6million a year, according to figures released to a Sunday newspaper. The Department of Foreign Af- fairs has resisted calls to shut one of the embassies as a cost-saving measure, saying the Popes offices would not recognise the Italian ambassador. In a statement released to the Sunday Tribune, the Department said: There is no possibility of combining either the premises or ambassadorial duties of these two missions. Apart from having very differ- ent purposes, the Vatican will not accept the accreditation of an am- bassador who is also the ambas- sador to the Italian state and neither will they accept the ac- creditation of an embassy with the same address as the embassy to the Italian state. According to the Sunday Trib- une, the embassy to Italy employs 13 people and costs 1.87million to run. Three local people and two Irish diplomatic staff are em- ployed at the Embassy to the Holy See and the operation bill there was 763,379 in 2008. Costs are expected to fall next year. The embassy in Rome is also accredited to Libya and San Ma- rino and the ambassador to Italy is also Irelands permanent repre- sentative to the Food and Agri- culture Organisation, the World Food Programme and the Inter- national Fund forAgriculture De- velopment. The Department is under pres- sure to cut costs after it emerged that diplomats at six high-profile missions had shared expenses of more than 7million over a two year period. A department spokesman de- clined to comment on speculation that an embassy, possibly Tehran, will be shut in the coming year as a cost-saving measure, saying that nothing had been decided. Metro understands that cut- backs rather than closure have not been ruled out. By JOANNE AHERN new lung disease genes discovered SCIENTISTS have discovered new genes for lung disease which they hope will lead to better treatment of conditions such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and asthma. Five genetic variants associated with the health of the human lung were identified by a team of almost 100 scientists, led by Dr Martin Tobin from the University of Leicester and Professor Ian Hall from the University of Nottingham. COPD affects about one in ten adults over 40 and is thought to be the fourth most common cause of death worldwide. Benedikt Nadig of Switzerland performs in the air during the qualifications of the International Ski Federation World Cup snowboard big air competition at downtown Seoul in South Korea yesterday Picture: AP Hangover cure? Tweet it JAMES BOND, Bertie Woosters valet Jeeves and Liza Minnellis character in Cabaret all swear that a raw egg in Worcestershire sauce is the best cure for a hangover. Some people opt for a greasy fry-up while others put their faith in the hair of the dog. But now a global Twitter experiment hopes to finally come up with the perfect cure for a Christmas hangover. Every day this week, Twitterers will be challenged to become so- called Twolunteers and contribute the morning-after remedies they believe work after a night of heavy drinking. The exercise comes as almost half of all employees say they fear they will be nursing a hangover this festive season with seven out of ten admitting it will affect their work, according to a survey for Blinkbox.com. Millions will find themselves suffering from the effects of festive over- indulgence, said a Blinkbox spokesman. Perhaps we will find a hangover cure that works. The remedy voted the best will be announced on Friday.Drink: Answers please index.html2.html3.html4.html5.html6.html7.html8.html9.html10.html11.html12.html13.html14.html15.html16.html17.html18.html19.html20.html21.html22.html23.html