If you live in Ireland today and are low paid, a lone parent, disabled or retired, or if you are a child living in a family with any of these groups, you are more than likely to be enduring some form of poverty and deprivation. Free article

Threats against Colombian human rights activists reached a new height in September when President Alvaro Uribe linked them to guerrilla groups during a public speech. Given the situation in Colombia, Uribe's remarks are effectively a death sentence for human rights activists, with the always willing right-wing paramilitaries as the executioners. Free article

BY ROBBIE SMYTH

Another week in the housing market and more bad news, not just for home buyers but for owners too. 26-County local authorities are proposing new planning levies, fuelling house prices even further as griping house builders get ready to pass on the increased costs to buyers, even though new figures on builders' profits show huge takings over the... Free article

What is going on with cutbacks in jobs in education and health? Isn't there a crisis in these sectors? What is the government doing? When the papers are full every day of 'recession looming', 'government deficit to top €1 billion', 'house prices about to collapse', 'economy growth rate falling', 'Celtic Tiger gone home', what does the government do? Free article

BY MÍCHEÁL MacDONNCHA - All parties in the Dáil agree that it was wrong for the British government to unilaterally cancel the Assembly elections in the Six Counties. They voted accordingly after a debate called by Sinn Féin TDs before the summer recess and on Tuesday in the Dáil, the Taoiseach repeated that the postponement was a move "we opposed and continue to oppose". Free article

Sinn Féin has presented a radical plan to the Dublin government seeking a complete overhaul of the workings of the second legislative house, the Seanad. "There is a strong view within our party that the Seanad should be abolished altogether and that was for long our party policy," Caoimhghín Ó Caoláin told the Seanad Reform Sub-Committee in September. Free article

Sinn Féin's Mitchel McLaughlin has responded to the announcement by Direct Rule Minister, Ian Pearson that the North's rates will increase by almost 30% in the next three years. "Sinn Féin's forecast that despite the higher cost of energy and other utilities here, the British Exchequer would seek to raise indirect tax levels to those of England and Wales, were dismissed out of hand as scaremongering by British ministers and other political parties," said the party chair. Free article

This Sunday will see the completion of the project undertaken by the Derry Republican Graves Association to mark the places where IRA Volunteers, on the Roll of Honour, died in Derry. Free article

Martin Ferris, has called on the RTE Sports Department to ensure that Sunday Times football writer Brian Glanville is not used by the station in any capacity following his blatantly racist stereotyping on Morning Ireland on Wednesday. Free article