It is not reassuring that Finance Minister Michael Noonan has acknowledged that enacted insolvency legislation may have to be “tweaked”.

The statement by Mr Ashoka Mody, the former International Monetary Fund (IMF) chief of mission, on the private debt forced upon the citizens of Ireland enhances the view of many, that, as the government has failed to do so, then the Irish people should take a case in the European Court of Justice against the ECB, the European Commission, and others for coercion and extortion.

At present Irish Water does not come within the remit of the cross-party Oireachtas Public Accounts Committee (PAC) which, as things stand, is our most tangible and important link between the people and democratic governance.

Despite the bad news today about Providence pulling out of the Dunquin well, we may still have the potential to create thousands of jobs and a secure exports industry based on a commodity that will be in constant demand; a commodity that would make us less dependent on the bond markets and reduce the debt mountain faster than any other method; a commodity that would help us to return to a decent standard of living; a commodity that would make us independent: oil and gas.

CORK cloud computing has made banner headlines, as did the demonstration for Queen Elizabeth of its leadership in the fields of nano-electronics and photonics, and we are all applauding these magnificent achievements and of course hoping that lots of jobs will follow for our eager young men and women.