Previous Day
Aer Lingus back on course
Intervention by the Labour Relations Commission (LRC) has been decisive in resolving a dispute that threatened to halt Aer Lingus operations because of disagreement between pilots and management over future terms and conditions of employment at Belfast airport. The willingness of chief executive Dermot Mannion to show some flexibility in these matters reflects well on his managerial style, while reassuring the public that competition and costs remain in sharp focus. It is important to note that settlement terms were put together by the LRC, rather than negotiated directly between the pilots' representatives and management, and that Mr Mannion secured the bulk of his objectives. p
Waiting on Iran
Efforts to increase sanctions on Iran for non-compliance with UN Security Council resolutions on its suspected nuclear weapons programme have been frustrated by the refusal of leading states to go along with them. Yesterday Russian leader Vladimir Putin said more patience is needed to test Iran's policy by diplomatic means, along the lines of the successful negotiations with North Korea. In parallel European Union foreign ministers rejected calls by France, supported by Germany and Britain, to apply unilateral EU sanctions should the United Nations process fail. But Iran's continued resistance may yet provoke a harder response. It has yet to prove its programme is for nuclear energy only. p
Opinion
How system is killing citizens
Susie Long and Greg Robertson were good people, writes Fintan O'Toole . They believed in decent values, in giving to those who needed it. pArmy faces daunting mission
About 350 Irish troops have begun to arrive in Chad, part of a 3,000-strong EU battlegroup designed to protect refugees near the Sudanese border. Tom Clonan examines what is probably the most challenging supply and command task the Defence Forces have faced to date pDialogue can only be based on shared search for truth
Rite and Reason Competing philosophies need to talk to each other without trading insults, suggests Cardinal Daly p
An Irishman's Diary
Exciting news from the world of British poultry, where a leading producer has reported a huge increase in productivity since he started playing classical music to his hens. p
