Members of an Oireachtas Justice Committee tonight defended the judiciary despite criticism from a late High Court judge that his former peers were influenced by the media and public opinion.

Opposition parties are expressing scepticism about a government plan to set up special prison units for gangland criminals.

TÁNAISTE and Justice Minister Michael McDowell last night strongly defended sweeping new privacy laws as critics accused him of trying to “muzzle” the press.

PRISONERS in Dublin’s Mountjoy Prison are living in deplorable conditions, a new report has found.

Pressure was mounting on Michael McDowell today following the suicide of an inmate at Dublin’s Mountjoy Prison.

MORE than 110 prisoners were given early release in a 10-day period this month because of overcrowding.

The victim of Dublin’s latest gangland killing was involved in a fight days before he was shot dead as he was watched television, neighbours said today.

Nowhere in Ireland is safe from drugs and gang warfare, an opposition TD warned tonight as gardaí investigated whether the country’s latest gun murder was drugs related.

A humanitarian quota system should be set up to give asylum to 1,000 victims of conflict or natural disasters each year, it was claimed today.

The two leading Opposition parties tonight called for a cross-border inquiry into the Omagh bombing following revelations that MI5 withheld vital anti-terrorism intelligence.

GARDAÍ are investigating whether a hoax pipe bomb planted outside a garda’s home yesterday was constructed by a bomb-maker suspected of being linked to other recent incidents.

A hotel yards from Government buildings was tonight at the centre of a major Garda investigation into IRA money laundering.

The Government wasted €2m on a refugee centre in Cork which never housed a single asylum seeker, it emerged today.

LEGALISING small-scale brothels is set to be considered by Fine Gael if they get back into power, the party’s justice spokesman Jim O’Keefe revealed last night.

A PYRAMID scheme that has spread like wildfire in West Cork, Kerry and Clare has pitted family members against each other with gardaí estimating as much as €10 million has been invested.

LEGISLATION governing pyramid schemes must be updated to protect vulnerable consumers, it was claimed yesterday.

Suspended gardaí have been paid €1.3m despite being unable to carry out any official duties, it emerged today.

Dealers who sell dangerous fireworks will face increased penalties under forthcoming legislation, it emerged today.

HEATHER Lodge, at Gubbeen, Schull, is described by West Cork wordsmith/auctioneer, Jim O’Keefe, as “an original Shaun and Matt”, referring to its builders, the O’Sullivan brothers whose building skills and quality of finish are highly regarded in the peninsula.

The Government has come under fire in the Dáil over the withdrawal of the State Pathologist's garda driver due to cutbacks.

THE parents of out-of-control teenagers should be forced to pay on-the-spot fines, Fine Gael claimed last night.

A young man shot dead in a gangland attack had a history of involvement in crime and arson, it emerged today.

The number of murders, sexual assaults and assaults has fallen in the first three months of this year, according to figures published today.

The number of gardaí on the beat increased by just 58 members this year, it emerged today.

Fine Gael has criticised the Government’s failure to tackle the high cost of tribunals of inquiry in Ireland.

Fine Gael TD Jim O’Keefe has called on Justice Minister Michael McDowell to publish a list of garda stations earmarked for closure ahead of this Friday’s local elections.

The Northern Secretary has said that the British government may change the law to ensure that members of the Real IRA could be convicted.

Fine Gael is proposing a tendering process for tribunal solicitors that would cut the cost of tribunals to the taxpayer.

The Department of Justice has refused to confirm or deny reports that the IRA killers of Garda Jerry McCabe were to be released from prison under the aborted peace deal that was supposed to restart the peace process last October.

Relatives of the Omagh bomb victims have come up against a wall of frustration south of the border, Fine Gael leader Enda Kenny claimed today.

The Government has treated the relatives of those killed in the Omagh bombing very poorly, Fine Gael leader Enda Kenny claimed today.

The trial of the three Irishmen accused of training anti-government rebels in Colombia is due to resume in the city of Medellin today.

Fine Gael TD Jim O’Keefe has given a sworn testimony to lawyers representing the three Irishmen facing trial in Colombia for allegedly training anti-Government rebels.

Fine Gael has called for legislation making Dail approval a prerequisite for any Irish involvement in the EU rapid reaction force.

Fine Gael is calling on the Government to ratify an international deal which would set up a world court to deal with those responsible for war crimes and genocide.