IRISH officials are holding bilateral meetings over the weekend with representatives from other EU member states to iron out any difficulties over the Lisbon Treaty guarantees.

A WEBSITE that shows exactly how MEPs vote and how often they attend parliament sessions was launched yesterday, and immediately led to a row between Irish politicians, and changes to the site.

TOUGHER EU-wide safety standards for toys, including a ban on toxic chemicals and stricter standards to limit the risk of choking accidents, were approved by EU governments.

THE country’s largest microchip maker, Intel is facing massive fines of up to €1 billion for allegedly trying to put its competitors out of business.

EU Commissioner Charlie McCreevy called for an end to “Punch and Judy” politics yesterday but then immediately took a whack at former taoiseach Garret FitzGerald.

IRELAND remains a popular country for people seeking asylum, especially Nigerians, according to EU figures just released.

THE European Commission has said there is no real end in sight to Ireland’s recession and cut this country and the rest of Europe’s growth figures for the rest of the year.

IRELAND has no alternative but to cut the burgeoning government deficit back to 3% by 2013, euro group ministers agreed at their meeting last night.

THE Government is to harness the know-how of leading international figures with Irish links to help with the country’s economic recovery.

EU HEALTH ministers will hold an emergency meeting in Brussels on Thursday to co-ordinate their response to the swine flu outbreak.