NEWT GINGRICH put up a stout defence of US President George W Bush’s intervention in Iraq on Marian Finucane’s radio show on Thursday.

THE debate on the EU constitution has begun and the chances are that it could become one of the greatest bores of all time because the same old faces are lining up with the same old tired arguments.

ROYSTON BRADY was roasted during the week for supposedly trying to grab the sympathy vote over his claim that his late father, a taxi driver, was kidnapped by the Dublin bombers of 1974.

LAST year people were taking it for granted that George W Bush would be re-elected this November, but the lessons of history would suggest that it may not be so easy. Indeed public opinion polls indicate that he has an uphill battle.

SEYMOUR HERSCH’S allegations that US Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld and the Pentagon were behind the decision to abuse the Arab prisoners sexually so that they would talk must be taken seriously.

TERRY DE VALERA’S memoir, which was published this week, has some fascinating insights. As the youngest son of Eamon de Valera, Terry provides some up-to-date observations of his own on the international scene.

ALLIED Irish Banks was exposed this week as having ripped off at least €14m since 1996 by systematically overcharging foreign exchange customers.

IT is ironic that Brian Curtin has been the centre of attention this week, while the architects of the court debacle have been left relatively unscathed.

MORDECHAI VANUNU was released on Wednesday after serving almost 18 years in jail for telling the truth about Israel's surreptitious efforts to develop nuclear weapons in 1986.

RUMOURS that Guinness was planning to wind up operations at St James's Gate, Dublin, and move its headquarters to the Park Royal Brewery near London were finally killed off this week with the news that the Park Royal operation is being closed down instead.