A look at the week that was
Snow business
You would think that we already have enough winter in this country - given that the current one has lasted for about two years - but a company says it's planning a €100m indoor winter leisure park in Dublin. With two ski runs and rock- and ice-climbing areas, it will be similar to developments in Manchester and Milton Keynes in the UK. Bringing the Alpine slopes to a warehouse in Tyrellstown, Co Dublin, would create up to 700 jobs, says Twinlite, the company behind it, and would be open by the end of 2010. After that, maybe they'd consider an indoor summer theme park, with a constant 27 degrees of sunny weather and water at bath temperatures.
Good business
For so long now consumers complained about how expensive sterling was against the euro, which made the fact that retail goods were still cheaper up North even more difficult to take. This week, sterling and euro ended the week close to parity, which has provoked complaints from the export and retail sectors at just how much cheaper it is in the North, but for shops in Newry they must be thinking that this Christmas all their Christmases have come at once.
We now know
Half of immigrants working in the restaurant tradeare paid less than the minimum wage, according to a survey
Barack Obamais Time magazine's person of the year
A poll by a British dating site also found that he is the world leader most gay menwould like to date The Numbers
€10bn The amount the Government has dedicated to recapitalising Irish banks
€1.05 m:The drop in the asking price of one very large four-bed house in north Co Dublin, now a snip at €3.75m
80%of us believe Ireland has benefited from membership of the EU, making us the greatest Europhiles