Taoiseach turns good news story into a bad one

IF you are Brian Cowen you have to be grateful for the small victories.

But if you are Brian Cowen, you will see the victories right in front of you, decide due process means you are not compelled to seize them, and walk away as you are handed the prize.

The events of the past 24 hours should have been a good news story for the Taoiseach: The EU Commissioner, a former taoiseach and some of the most long-standing members of his party, virtuously decided to “gift” their ministerial pensions to the taxpayer.