Speaking after a meeting with Taoiseach Bertie Ahern last Thursday, Sinn Féin President Gerry Adams said Ahern had told him he had no advance notice of the British putting an amnesty for security forces into OTR legislation. Free article

Twenty-Six-County Finance Minister Brian Cowen was announcing details of his budget as An Phoblacht went to press this week. In an initial reaction Sinn Féin Dáil leader Caoimhghín O Caoláin TD said Cowen was attempting to erase the memory of previous Fianna Fáil/PD budgets which rewarded the very wealthy and allowed the gap between rich and poor in Irish society to widen. Free article

BY Justin Moran

It is shaping up to be the largest show of union strength in decades. SIPTU's call for a national day of protest on Friday in support of Irish Ferries' workers has galvanised the Irish Trade Union Movement. Activists across the country are striving to ensure the highest possible turnout for the demonstration in Dublin and a number of other towns in... Free article

Does the appointment of Orangemen to the Parades Commission breach the legislation? That's the question nationalist residents' groups are asking the Commissioner of Public Appointments to investigate. Free article

Draft guidelines drawn up by the British Government for Community Restorative Justice (CRJ) schemes operating in the Six Counties have been "cautiously welcomed" by CRJ Ireland. Spokesperson Noel McCartney said his organisation wanted to clarify aspects of the draft proposals but he welcomed the guidelines as "a basis for moving forward". Free article

As the Fianna Fáil/ Progressive Democrats' Government marches forward with its plans to privatise services throughout the 26 Counties, the healthcare system has become a key battleground. Free article