The Government has been accused of going silent on the promised reforms and independent review of the “dysfunctional” Department of Justice.

The Department of Justice failed to examine all available evidence when it wrongly refused some Magdalene laundry survivors access to redress payments.

The curious tale of when Tánaiste Frances Fitzgerald became aware of a legal smear campaign against Sgt Maurice McCabe has seen twists, turns and contradictions, but still lacks full clarification.

A leading member of the cross-party Dáil public accounts committee has warned Government there is nothing in the now published Stepaside garda station re-opening report that changes her view what happened was a “political stroke”.

The path has been cleared for the new Fine Gael leader, Leo Varadkar, to become Taoiseach.

Two sisters of Ibrahim Halawa, an Irish citizen who has been detained in Egpyt without trial for almost four years now, are suing the Minister for Justice over a delay of more than 18 months in deciding applications to have their husbands join them here.

Several groups have welcomed the recognition of Traveller’s minority ethnicity status.

Some 624 women held in Magdalene laundries have to date received a lump sum payment of more than €23m under a government redress scheme.

The Policing Authority has decided that it may require access to “a certain level of operational detail” on organised crime and related garda intelligence to fulfil its role. The move by the agency follows a letter it received from a deputy garda commissioner regarding the authority’s wish to discuss these issues with the garda commissioner.

Enda Kenny listed the key findings of the Fennelly Report in the Dáil yesterday but questions remain about the whole affair, writes Cormac O’Keeffe

Enda Kenny does not emerge from the proceedings in a very flattering light, writes Cormac O’Keeffe

The Department of Finance is to spark a scramble among the country’s top PR firms for the prestigious contract to design and implement a national communications strategy on the Government’s plan to address mortgage arrears.

Almost 330 staff in government departments are on career breaks — a third of them for more than three years — according to figures released in response to parliamentary questions.

The Governor of Missouri ordered the National Guard to a suburb of St Louis today, hours after police used tear gas to clear protesters off the streets following a week of demonstrations against the fatal police shooting of a black teenager.

So, were they small steps for a newly-found accountability?

The chairman of the Oireachtas committee on Justice, Defence and Equality says he’s "confident" that an announcement will be made before the end of the year that the Naval Service is to get a third new ship.

THE plan by Fianna Fáil to table a motion of no confidence in Alan Shatter will ensure that controversies surrounding the beleaguered justice minister will continue to dominate the political agenda for yet another week.

Magdalene survivors living outside the State will not be entitled to health benefits in their country of residence but would have to return here to avail of promised healthcare under legislation being drafted by the Department of Justice.

The Government has been told that its refusal to commission an independent investigation into the treatment of women in Magdalene Laundries is an issue that is “not going to go away”.

The father of James Bulger has hit out after one of his son’s killers was released from prison for a second time and declared he believes he will offend again.

Celtic manager Neil Lennon has been cleared of driving while using his mobile phone.

The Spanish justice department has said the driver of the train that derailed on Wednesday will not be appearing before a judge today as had been hoped.

Ireland continues to operate one of the most restrictive asylum regimes in Europe with just 10% of applicants last year being granted permission to stay.

The deceased victims of the Magdalene Laundries will be remembered today at a special ceremony at Glasnevin Cemetery in Dublin.

Survivors of the Magdalene laundries have quickly rejected the Taoiseach's apology, and demanded a fuller and more frank admission from government and the religious orders involved.

Justice for Magdalenes has reacted angrily to the announcement that a report investigating State involvement with the institutions is to be delayed for a third time.

Dominic Howard of Muse tells Ed Power why the group made the decision to venture into new territory on their latest album

MUSIC NEWS: For a man knocking on the door of his seventh decade (his birthday is Jun 18), Paul McCartney is showing no signs of slowing down.

Justice open the summer concert series tonight, with the venue also hosting coverage of Euro 2012, says Colette Sheridan

FUN is an under-appreciated component in music, but for French electronic duo Justice it is their raison d’être.

The Prodigy have been voted the best dance act of all time in a poll by long-running dance magazine Mixmag.

HAVING promised not to send its citizens to jail for non-payment of fines, our Government has sent even more this year than last year, for that very reason.

JAILING those involved in the riots for longer than they deserve risks undermining confidence in the justice system, lawyers and campaigners have said.

JUDGES will be given the power to assess whether a person with an intellectual disability has the “capacity” for decision-making, or to be a reliable witness in a court of law.

A controlled explosion has been carried out to destroy a letter bomb found outside the Greek justice ministry in the capital Athens, police said today.

The debate over the wearing of the full veil by Islamic women in France is raging on with a French Justice saying a ban is necessary for coexistence between faiths and secular society.

Republic of Ireland star Aiden McGeady was today convicted of driving at nearly twice the speed limit.

ONE of the country’s top maternity hospitals is trying to contact the parents of 138 dead children whose organs were kept without their knowledge between 2000 and 2007.

Europe and America are forging an even closer relationship following the decision to close Guantanamo Bay, the European Commission’s top justice and security official said today.

FINANCIAL watchdogs expressed alarm yesterday that nearly €100m of taxpayers’ money was spent on prison facilities without being subjected to a proper tendering process.

PERHAPS you would permit me to correct two errors in your reporting of comments of the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform in Dáil Éireann on March 5 (‘Ahern refuses to explain dropped case’, March 6).

She’s out of the maternity ward and into a Cabinet meeting, dressed in elegant black and stiletto heels – five days after giving birth at age 43.