The publication of the Mahon report in March ended the era of tribunals, writes Michael Clifford

LARRY Goodman’s purchase of the old Bank of Ireland headquarters on Baggot St in Dublin — announced last weekend — is a remarkable story.

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Skipper Scott Brown returns to the Celtic side for their SPL clash with St Johnstone at Parkhead this afternoon.

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Seven patients were granted conditional release from the Central Mental Hospital last year, the first such discharges under a new legal system.

JOURNALIST and broadcaster Sam Smyth was awarded legal costs in the tens of thousands against Michael Lowry after his successful defence of a defamation action against him by the Co Tipperary TD.

Journalist and broadcaster Sam Smyth was today awarded legal costs in the tens of thousands against Michael Lowry following Smyth’s successful defence of a defamation action against him by the Co Tipperary TD.

IT’S TOO soon to rush to declare Terence Malick’s The Tree of Life (12A) a masterpiece, but it is safe to say that there won’t be a more ambitious and thought-provoking film released this year.

MICHAEL LOWRY pocketed £34,500 intended as a Christmas bonus from Dunnes Stores for staff of his refrigeration company, according to a little-publicised finding of the Moriarty Tribunal.

DESPITE the corrupting secrecy that does so much to block the advance of our social, political, economic, educational and legal development, we have been exposed to a litany of horrors over the last few years.

PEOPLE are being detained at the Central Mental Hospital despite being deemed fit for discharge because there is no way to enforce conditions for their release.

PROGRESSIVE Democrat TD Noel Grealish has criticised the Mahon Tribunal, saying it has gone beyond its remit in investigating the personal finances of Taoiseach Bertie Ahern.

THE biggest ongoing political story of 2007 is set to dominate 2008 again: the investigation of Taoiseach Bertie Ahern’s previous financial affairs at the Mahon Tribunal. Many people can’t decide if this is a good or bad thing, both for Ahern and for the country. To tease out the issues I’ve set out a fictional conversation between two people, arguing both sides. I’ll let you draw your own conclusions.

Prosecutors today filed three murder charges against a Micronesian man accused of opening fire inside a Missouri church, killing three people and wounding five others during a worship service of a mostly Micronesian congregation.

A gunman ran amok in a Missouri church, killing three people and wounding several others.

RANGERS manager Paul Le Guen insists he still has faith in his players despite the defeat to Dundee United, which leaves them 15 points behind Celtic in the Bank of Scotland Premier League.

Ireland's last remaining contender in the World Darts Grand Prix was knocked out of the event at the City West Hotel in Dublin last night.

SEAMUS MOYNIHAN, the former captain of the Kerry football team, announced his retirement from the sport this week. In the process, he set an example which could be followed to the benefit of the whole nation.

TWICE before, allegations have been made about the Taoiseach Bertie Ahern and donations from wealthy businessman. And twice before they came to nothing.

The murky financial dealings of former Taoiseach Charles J Haughey have long fuelled the political rumour mill and led to the setting up of two state tribunals.

THE Witness Protection Programme needs to be upgraded in the fight against crime, Dáil Public Accounts Committee chairman Michael Noonan said yesterday.

TAX dodgers paid nearly €2.2 billion since the law was tightened in recent years, Revenue Commissioners’ chairman Frank Daly disclosed yesterday.

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The Court of Criminal Appeal today adjourned an appeal by the Director of Public Prosecutions against the leniency of a seven year sentence, with two years suspended, on a unemployed Cork man who sexually assaulted 16 children over 16 months in fast food restaurants, swimming pools and sports grounds in the city.

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AVIAN flu will “undoubtedly” be carried to Britain by migrating birds, the president of the British Veterinary Association warned yesterday.

Minister for Health Mary Harney must act over the growing threat from avian flu amid warnings it will hit Europe, it was urged today.

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Gordon Strachan handed Japanese international playmaker Shunsuke Nakamura his debut against the Tannadice men at Celtic Park.

DRIVERS suspected of having consumed alcohol and brought to a garda station don’t have to give breath samples in the manner indicated by a garda but they must provide breath specimens sufficient to enable the concentration of alcohol in the breath to be determined, the Supreme Court decided yesterday.

Kelly Osbourne has accused her ex-boyfriend Bert McCracken of developing "such an ego" after embarking on a romance with her.

LONDON Ambulance Service sent five vehicles to Warren Street Tube station at 12.45pm yesterday after receiving reports of a rucksack exploding on a train in a tunnel just outside the station.

THE recent disclosures at the Moriarty Tribunal would hardly have been newsworthy if Charlie Haughey had not accepted money from Ben Dunne.

REVELATIONS of clandestine introductions between the Taoiseach of the day, the chairman of the Revenue Commissioners, and a prominent businessman, whose companies faced a multi million pound tax bill, are the stuff of a Mafia novel.

MAJOR questions will be raised over whether Ben Dunne received financial payback from former Taoiseach Charles J Haughey after a tribunal heard yesterday that the Dunne family had their tax bill cut by £22.8 million in the aftermath of meetings with the Revenue initiated by Mr Haughey.

Today's is to be Martin O’Neill’s final competitive match as Celtic manager before he hands over the reins to Gordon Strachan next week.

The family of the slain teenager Brian Murphy said tonight that the criminal justice system was “in tatters” and had swung too far in favour of the accused.

LAWYERS for the only man jailed for the killing of student Brian Murphy outside Club Anabel at Dublin’s Burlington Hotel in August 2000 submitted yesterday that some of the statements of his co-accused were highly prejudicial to him and went well beyond the prosecution’s case against him.

Celtic headed into their Bank of Scotland Premier League game against Dundee United hoping to extend their lead at the top of the table to four points – for 24 hours at least.

BRIGHTON-BASED punter John McCracken was warned off indefinitely by the Jockey Club yesterday at a hearing held in his absence.