The European Union is moving toward a major clampdown on tobacco, with member states backing plans for bigger and bolder health warnings on cigarette packs and bans on most flavourings like menthol.

The European Commission is to ban for two years beginning in December, pesticides blamed for killing the bees that pollinate food and fruit crops.

The Minister for Finance Michael Noonan, along with the EU Commissioner for Consumer Policy, Tonio Borg, will launch an EU information campaign targeted at consumers today.

One-in-10 Irish people have no bank account, many because they have been refused one, but banks will in future be forced to open a current account for any applicant.

Three insecticides blamed for killing huge numbers of bees and endangering food crops throughout the world will be partially banned by the EU.

IT’S three months into the horsemeat saga and we might finally have run out of decent jokes.

Ireland’s performance in a European-wide audit of meat products has been welcomed after horse DNA was found in only a fraction of samples.

Test results on 50 samples of beef products in Ireland have all come back negative for horse DNA.

Ikea is the latest company to be caught up in the horsemeat scandal after it was forced to withdraw a batch of its meatballs due to the presence of horse DNA.

Agriculture Minster Simon Coveney said today that agreement has been reached at a European level on new tests for horse DNA and traces of the veterinary drug phenylbutazone, also known as 'bute'.

The EU's top health official has said there is no need to panic over the Europe-wide horsemeat scandal.

Thousands of samples of processed meats are to be tested across the EU for traces of horsemeat.

Europe's Health and Consumer policy chief today rejected claims that EU policy was to blame for the horse meat scandal.

Dutch food safety watchdogs have been drafted in as part of the investigation into the contamination of Irish beef burgers with horsemeat, in a move that places a Dutch company at the centre of the probe.

Enda’s German gong overshadowed