MANY people find themselves burdened with huge levels of debt through credit card bills, unpaid utility bills and bank overdrafts.

The new Insolvency Service is being criticised for the fees charged to those struggling with debt.

Despite the recent attack on private pensions through the pensions levy, pensions are still the most efficient way to provide for income in retirement.

A CRACKDOWN on fraudulent social welfare claims yielded almost half a billion euro in savings to the state last year, it has emerged.

THE total of compromised Personal Public Service (PPS) numbers has risen to 703, according to the Department of Social and Family Affairs, which is also investigating a further 409 numbers that it suspects were illegally obtained.

THE Green Party has proposed a tracking system to quickly identify the hundreds of children who drop out of education after primary school every year.

IRISH Life & Permanent (ILP) has called on the Government to do more to encourage the take-up of personal pensions.

PENSION providers were last night dealing with a last-minute rush by employers to meet the deadline to make Personal Retirement Savings Accounts (PRSAs) available to employees.

PAYMENTS under the drugs and medical card schemes topped €1.2 billion last year, up almost 25% on 2001.