THE politics of the last week reads like a John Le Carre novel.

TWO political crises on a Monday morning. Isn’t that great!

THREE of us who work in the community and voluntary sector went to Belfast the other night to meet a group that runs charities in Northern Ireland and to brief them about happenings in our sector in the Republic.

IN A country of petty injustices, why does nobody in authority mention them?

NOBODY says it better than Terry Prone.

DO you remember Smiley’s People? It’s one of the great classic TV series, based on the novels of John LeCarre and starring Alec Guinness as the deep-thinking, slow moving British intelligence officer.

FULL equality for gay, lesbian, and transgender people has been described as the last civil and human rights campaign. I support that proposition.

IN THE course of the children’s rights referendum campaign — on October 31st, 2012, to be exact — I took part in a debate with John Waters and Kathy Sinnott.

I would simply like to pay the highest of compliments to Michael Clifford for his piece last Saturday, (Opinion, February 2), re religion in education — one of the most cogent, succinct and necessary columns seen in any paper for many a long day.

DO you know Ballydehob? It’s a beautiful village, way down in the south west of our country.