Taoiseach predicts impasse over arms issue may be broken

Saturday/Sunday

The Taoiseach, Mr Ahern, predicted the impasse over decommissioning may be broken shortly. Speaking at the annual Fianna Fail commemoration at the grave of Wolfe Tone in Bodenstown, Co Kildare, he said "we are very close to being able to move forward on this issue".

Suicide figures for the first quarter of the year increased by 81 per cent over the same period last year, the Irish Association of Suicidology announced. Last year, 433 people in Ireland committed suicide, representing a 14 per cent increase on 1996.

There were ugly confrontations between gardai and Sinn Fein supporters in Dublin city centre following Sinn Fein Youth's national congress.

In front of a 35,000-strong crowd at Croke Park, Ireland beat Australia to win the International Rules series.

Monday

Sinn Fein's chief negotiator, Mr Martin McGuinness, and the First Minister, Mr David Trimble, emerged from separate meetings with the British Prime Minister, Mr Blair, at 10 Downing Street each insisting the other must make the next move to break the impasse over arms decommissioning.

An eviction order was served on two sisters in their 80s living in a property at Marino Park in Blackrock, Co Dublin. The eviction of Ms Rose Blackall (81) and her sister Eileen (87) followed a seven-year court battle over two wills made by the sisters' mother regarding the house.

The Irish Veterinary Union agreed to drop its minimum fee scales for farmers after being threatened with prosecution under the Competition Act 1991.

Ireland's first woman county manager was appointed. Ms Ann McGuinness, a principal officer in the Department of the Environment, was awarded the post in Co Westmeath.

A Clare-born, US-based philanthropist announced a $1,000 prize for Clare County council's "Waffler of the Year".

Tuesday

The Government was asked to introduce major legislative changes to enable a full investigation into the use of non-resident bank accounts for the purposes of tax evasion. The request came from the chairman of the Dail's Public Accounts Committee, Mr Jim Mitchell, in an interim report on the AIB/DIRT affair.

The Church of Ireland Primate, Dr Robin Eames, asked Portadown Orangemen to honour three pledges, relating to respecting the law and the church, before they would be welcome at Sunday service in Drumcree next year.

Lord of the Dance star Michael Flatley reached an out-of-court settlement with his former manager in London who had sued him for an estimated £10 million for breach of contract.

Three convicted INLA killers smiled as they were jailed for life for the murder of LVF chief Billy Wright in the Maze prison last December.

The man accused of murdering journalist Veronica Guerin, Mr Paul Ward, told the Special Criminal Court he was assaulted by a garda during questioning at Lucan Garda station.

Fingal County Council rejected motions to preserve the former Phoenix Park Racecourse as an open space.

Drinking in public was banned from the streets of Galway.

Wednesday

EU forecasts predicting record growth in the economy were rejected as too optimistic by the Minister for Finance, Mr McCreevy. The Commission predicted the economy would grow by an exceptionally rapid 11.4 per cent this year, up from an estimated 8.7 per cent growth prediction made earlier this year.

A civil case taken by a young Co Kildare couple against a developer who increased the price of a house by £20,000 after accepting a deposit was dismissed at Naas Circuit Court. Fine Gael called for urgent legislation to protect young couples being "gazumped" by developers.

Building workers protested outside Mountjoy Prison in Dublin over the High Court's jailing of two colleagues arrested on a picket line during an unofficial dispute at a site on Merrion Road.

Errors in the administration of the staff pension fund at the Educational Building Society have been admitted by Irish Pensions Trust Ltd, The Irish Times revealed.

The final link in Dublin's CRing motorway network, the South Eastern Motorway, was approved by the Minister for the Environment, Mr Dempsey.

Thursday

Radical changes in the criminal law, including new restrictions on the right to silence and an extension of Garda search powers, are expected to be brought to Cabinet by the Minister for Justice shortly, The Irish Times learned.

The pace of deportation of rejected asylum-seekers has increased significantly over the past few weeks with 49 people deported this year, it was revealed.

The National Conference Centre was placed in doubt again after the Dublin Docklands Development Authority objected to Dublin Corporation about its location.

Child begging in Dublin has reached a serious level, with 2,872 sightings of begging incidents between October 1997 and September 1998, the ISPCC reported.

The Turk's Head pub in Dublin agreed to pay undisclosed damages to painter Graham Knuttel after it exhibited imitations of the artist's work.

The former Republic of Ireland and Arsenal player David O'Leary was offered the job of manager of Leeds United.