IRISH banks will be prevented from growing bigger, lending more money or taking in more deposits, under the Government’s guarantee scheme, Finance Minister Brian Lenihan has said.

IRELAND was under increasing pressure yesterday to submit its bank guarantee plan to the European Commission for clearance amid claims that it breaches EU state aid rules.

THE European Commission was waiting last night for details of the Government’s €400 billion guarantee to Irish banks under competition rules.

THE EU force in Chad is bracing itself for a tough second half of their tour, with trouble expected from rebel groups and bandits.

THE European Parliament is to collect information about the funding of the Libertas referendum campaign in Ireland and send it on to the Irish authorities.

FIGURES released by the Department of Justice suggest many Latvians living in Ireland are involved in marriages of convenience, particularly with Pakistani and Bangladeshi asylum seekers.

EUROPEAN Parliament heads will today discuss setting up a committee of inquiry into whether anti-EU elements helped fund the Libertas campaign in Ireland.

THE cost of sending text messages when abroad should tumble next year by up to two-thirds for Irish people, while charges for downloading data on a mobile phone will also be slashed.

THE government’s borrowings this year will be more than 3% of GDP and will breach the EU’s guidelines, Finance Minister Brian Lenihan has warned.

NEARLY €8 billion has been spent upgrading the country’s water systems over the past decade.