ireland.com - The Irish Times

Life of Carolyn Swift celebrated by theatre and media worlds
Many of the great, most of the good were there. They had come to celebrate, not so much commemorate, a comprehensive life rounded by Spiked , as producer Brian De Salvo told them. Spiked: Church-State Intrigue and The Rose Tattoo was the book she had written with Gerard Whelan. It was published while Carolyn Swift lay "eyeballing death" in the hospice at Harold's Cross Dublin. p

Cosgrave denied access to all Dunlop documents
The Flood tribunal has rejected an application by former Fine Gael senator Cllr Liam Cosgrave for access to all documents relating to Mr Frank Dunlop in its possession. p

IFA challenges figures on farm income
A dispute between the Department of Agriculture and the Irish Farmers Association over how farm incomes should be interpreted has spilled over into the negotiations on a new partnership deal. p

Other Stories

Farmers to share extra milk quota
Farmers who were forced to cut milk production because their herds were hit by animal disease between 1978-1980 are to share an allocation of 32 million litres of additional milk quota. p
Garda says newspaper report on bribery allegations libelled him
A detective garda claimed in the High Court yesterday that he was libelled in an article in the Sunday Business Post early last year in which he was not named. p
EU aid plan is funding abortions, says Dana
An EU law dealing with a development aid programme would fund abortion in the poorest countries of the world, according to the Connacht/Ulster MEP, Ms Dana Rosemary Scallon. In Strasbourg yesterday, Ms Scallon said she was deeply shocked. The Council of Ministers had already confirmed that abortion did not fall within the Union's legal competence. p
Road safety adverts to be changed
Changes have been made to two hard-hitting road safety television adverts following complaints from Renault Ireland that one of its cars could be identified in the footage used. p
Man on murder charge abused by his father
The brother of a man accused of murdering his former girlfriend and stabbing her mother has told his trial that his brother was mentally and sexually abused by their father from a young age and had spent six weeks in a psychiatric unit shortly before the stabbing. p
Mourners urged not to hide feelings
Mourners attending the funeral in Bunclody, Co Wexford, of one of the five young men drowned in the River Slaney in recent days, were urged by their parish priest not to bottle feelings up but to share them with someone. p
Off-licences sanctioned for O'Connell Street
A judge yesterday gave the go-ahead for the first fully-fledged off-licences in Dublin's O'Connell Street despite opposition from the city council, the Garda and business interests. p
Sister of murder victim still waiting for 'justice'
The sister of one of two women stabbed to death in a community care home in Grangegorman in north Dublin more than five years ago has said she is still waiting for justice to be done. p
Gardai attacked after intercepting mobile phone thief
A mobile phone snatch by a teenage boy after the 2001 All-Ireland hurling semi-final led to an off-duty garda being seriously injured by a gang of youths, the Dublin Children's Court heard yesterday. p
Farmer guilty of 'appalling' cruelty
A judge has ordered a farmer to sell his sheep and never engage in sheep-farming again after hearing details of what he described as "an appalling case" of animal cruelty in which "excruciating pain" had been inflicted on sheep and lambs. p
Homes are occupied for 60% of burglaries
Six out of 10 burglaries take place when people are at home,according to a new report published by eircom PhoneWatch. The report is based on a sample of more than 16,000 household insurance claims between June 2001 and June 2002. p
Emergency radio may disrupt pacemakers
A mobile communications system - a digital form of the familiar "walkie-talkie" - which is used by police, firemen and paramedics in 50 countries, has been found to interfere with critical life-saving medical equipment, according to a report. p
Vigilance urged after boy (2) dies from meningitis
People around Athlone, Co Westmeath, have been asked to be vigilant for meningitis symptoms following the death of a two-year-old boy this week. p
Taxi protest to converge on city centre today
Severe traffic disruption is expected in Dublin this afternoon, as hundreds of taxi drivers converge on the city centre to protest about deregulation and other issues. p
Hearings into 20 parcels of land will be divided into modules
The Flood tribunal is to hold public hearings into allegations of planning corruption concerning 20 separate parcels of land, it has been announced. p
Watch kept on ship after sinking
The coastguard is continuing to monitor an area around 25 miles off Mizen Head on the south-west coast after the sinking on Monday of the Spanish-crewed fishing vessel, the Ixkote. p
Western Commission condemns funding cut
The Western Development Commission has criticised the Minister for Finance's decision to cut its venture capital funding budget by almost 70 per cent. p
Study to examine alcohol and injuries connection
A national alcohol and injuries study is being introduced in hospital A&E departments as part of the Government's alcohol awareness campaign. p
Adult moans cut no ice with young skaters out for fun
Nothing says Christmas like the soft thud of bottoms hitting the synthetic surface of a skating rink. p
Further suspect animal feed found
More contaminated animal feed from the US has been found by the Department of Agriculture, it emerged yesterday. p
CSO figures for 2001 paint a picture of the good times
The average Irish person earns €470 a week, lives in a bungalow, is most likely to be a manager or administrator if male - or a clerical worker if female. He or she prefers to drive a Ford car and spends most of their personal income on food, drink and cigarettes. p
Ahern hears unions' Budget concerns
The Budget must not be allowed to undermine the gains made by workers under social partnership, union leaders told the Taoiseach yesterday. Unions and the Government, however, remain committed to negotiating a new national partnership deal to succeed the Programme for Prosperity and Fairness. p
Postal services facing serious disruption after dispute talks fail
Postal services face serious disruption from early next month following the failure of talks yesterday to resolve the postmasters' dispute. p
McDowell defends report of Ms Justice Lindsay
Ms Justice Alison Lindsay has been subjected to "increasingly vindictive and thoughtless attacks" following the publication of her report into the infection of hundreds of haemophilia patients by the Blood Transfusion Service, the Attorney General, Mr McDowell has declared. Strongly defending Ms Justice Lindsay, whose report was published in September, Mr McDowell said it was "a model of clarity, concision and fairness". p
No climbdown, FF backbenchers told
Angry Fianna Fáil backbenchers were told yesterday there would be no Government climb-down on the controversial decision to abolish the first-time house buyers' grant. p
Government open to revised tribunal terms, says Ahern
The Taoiseach, Mr Ahern, has indicated the Government was open to considering revised terms of reference for the Morris tribunal, which is investigating alleged Garda corruption in Co Donegal. p
Bruton warns of 'isolation' from EU
The former Taoiseach, Mr John Bruton, has accused the Government of endangering Ireland's national interest by undermining the Convention on the Future of Europe. p

In the North

Governments hope talks can create trust
The British and Irish governments hope that the multi-party talks at Parliament Buildings, Stormont today will at the very least create the potential for the parties building trust that ultimately would lead to a political breakthrough. p
British find new files on 1974 bombs
New files have been found by the British government dealing with the 1974 Dublin/Monaghan bombings, the Taoiseach has been told by the Northern Ireland Secretary of State, Mr Paul Murphy. p
3 held after guns, drugs seized
Two women and a man were questioned by police tonight after a weapons and drugs seizure in a north Belfast loyalist housing estate. p
Brigadier did not know plans after Paras sent in
The British army brigadier who ordered the 1st Battalion of the Parachute Regiment into Derry's Bogside on Bloody Sunday has admitted he did not know what the Paras planned to do after he had deployed them. p
Judge refuses bail in SF 'spy' case
The Sinn Féin administration official accused of IRA spying was yesterday refused bail. p

Dail/Seanad report

State wants GAA to help 2008 soccer finals
The Government is not asking the GAA to open Croke Park to rugby, soccer or cricket, but rather to allow just four games to be played there in 2008 for the European soccer championships. p
Estimates vote won 79-61
The Government's Estimates were accepted in the Dáil last night by a comfortable 18-vote majority, 79 votes to 61. In the end there were no surprises as the Government's backbenchers voted to accept the Estimates, including the abolition of the first-time house buyers' grant, about which some most concern had been expressed. p
Taoiseach says no tax increases are planned
The Taoiseach has indicated that the Government is not planning tax increases. "We will not abandon the low tax regime that has been the engine of our economic and social progress," said Mr Ahern. p
Final decision on taxation defended
The Minister of State for Europe, Mr Dick Roche, said he had issued a strong letter to the president of the European Convention, pointing out the Government's view that the right of nation states to make the ultimate decision on taxation had to be defended. p

The Fllod Tribunal

Flood return marked by dearth of disclosures
The Flood tribunal is back after a year's break, but the real fireworks are a few weeks away yet, writes Paul Cullen p

Regional News

Farmers welcome new report on deaths of animals
The author of an independent report commissioned by the Irish Farmers' Association into unexplained animal deaths in the Askeaton area of Co Limerick in the early 1990s has said that industrial pollution could not be ruled out as a cause. p
Valid questions raised on EPA's methods
The Environmental Protection Agency will have to answer questions raised by the latest report on events at Askeaton, writes Dick Ahlstrom ,Science Editor p
Rural dwellers' association says EU policies are forcing population clearances
EU policies are forcing large-scale population clearances from rural Ireland and contributing to over-population on the east coast, according to a new umbrella organisation which aims to combat the trend. The Irish Rural Dwellers' Association, which holds its first convention in Galway tomorrow, says the National Spatial Strategy will fail if it does not address the "crisis". p

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