There was a strong opposition from Siptu to the exploitation of migrant workers in Ireland at their special delegate conference on 31 January 2006, held in the Abbey theatre in Dublin. Shop stewards from around the country met to endorse a motion to participate in talks on a new national "social partnership" agreement. Evidence of much back-scene negotiations between union leadership and Government was evident in correspondence circulated to members.
Labour keeps an embarrassed silence over Rabbitte's use of the 'race' card. Rabbitte has damaged his standing within the party, perhaps fatally, and has improved the chances of a Fianna Fáil-Labour government after the next election. By Eoin Ó Murchú and Vincent Browne
The Dáil sub-committee on Dáil reform rarely meets, there are no minutes of its meetings and its last report was in 1997. Frustrated with lack of change and participation, Fine Gael and Labour have unveiled a short programme of reforms to 'make the Dáil more effective'. Muiris MacCarthaigh assesses their proposals
Secret services:
Dick Marty has produced an interim report on allegations of CIA rendition flights and secret prisons in Europe. Now the Irish Government and their European counterparts have detailed questions to answer. Colin Murphy reports
It's good to do business with Environment Minister Dick Roche, at least if the other party is a big multi-national company.
We can no longer accept the word of Government ministers in relation to dealings with the United States on sensitive defence matters because of the calculated fudge and misrepresentations that have been deployed over Shannon. Now that the Government has been caught secretly entering into two Treaties with America which were not disclosed to the Dáil, as required by the Constitution, we have reason to be even more skeptical over what is going on.
Harry Browne reports from Noam Chomsky's talk at UCD.
Ironically, the Irish Independent, which vigorously pursued the story, often makes much of its disregard for PC values. A similar incongruity could be observed in the recent treatment of the story of the death of Liam Lawlor, when several newspapers which have been assiduous in promoting the idea that sexual morality should not be subject to the collective conscience, went big on a story in which the "sting" had to do with the exact "moral" values such newspapers have worked assiduously to dislodge.
With only eight years of landfill left, the minister with responsibility for waste has declared incineration is the way forward