Saturday/Sunday
A debt of £28,000 from Woodchester Bank to the Labour Party in 1994 to fund the failed European election campaign of Orla Guerin was subsequently written off as a political contribution. It followed a written fundraising appeal to the business sector after the election.
Labour sources attribute the "leaking" of details as an attempt to deflect attention from the Ellis affair. The Fianna Fail TD, Mr John Ellis, had £240,000 written off by National Irish Bank in 1989.
The Archdiocese of Dublin rejected allegations that the former archbishop of Dublin, Dr John Charles McQuaid, was a paedophile. The allegations, published in the Sunday Times, were based on the forthcoming book by a journalist, John Cooney.
Hundreds of people gathered to pay their last respects in the north Cork village of Church town to the three women and one child killed in a car accident near Mallow last week.
Monday
The Northern editor of the Sunday Tribune, Ed Moloney, was named Journalist of the Year in the annual ESB National Media Awards for "defending the highest journalistic standards". Mr Moloney had won a long-running legal battle against handing over interview notes to the RUC. Two Irish Times journalists, Frank McDonald and Alison O'Connor, were winners of the Campaigning and Social Issues awards in print journalism.
The Department of Justice issued an "open invitation to anyone" to provide accommodation for asylum-seekers as the number of asylum applications now exceeds 1,000 a month. According to a Romanian journalist, Ireland is regarded as an easy port of entry within Romania's Roma community.
A Fine Gael childcare seminar heard that Ireland is the only state in the EU to have a childcare crisis. The party leader, Mr John Bruton, urged employers to allow time for childcare although he argued that employer organisations were not the body that should be driving the debate.
Tuesday
The National Economic and Social Council issued a report designed as a blueprint for talks on a new national programme to replace Partnership 2000. It calls for efforts to combat poverty and social exclusion, increases in social welfare payments and tax reductions for the lower-paid as well as detailing recommendations for a range of new childcare measures.
The Minister for Education announced his High Court challenge to the Information Commissioner's decision to release information which would enable the media to compile league tables. Mr Martin said comparing schools solely on the basis of examination results would have a damaging impact on secondary schools and their pupils and would discourage schools which work with weaker children.
After 10 days of talks to end the Northern Ireland impasse, Senator George Mitchell met the Taoiseach, Mr Ahern, before travelling to London for talks with Mr Tony Blair and on to the US to brief President Clinton. Senator Mitchell asked the Independent International Commission on Decommissioning for a report on its assessment and will hold formal talks with the NI parties early next week. His review is expected to conclude shortly.
Wednesday
The Government announced its mid-term Programme for Government to highlight its action plan for the remainder of its term in office. Although lacking in detail, the review set out the Coalition's various targets, which include achieving full employment and reducing the income-tax burden on the average taxpayer and promised a strategy to address the childcare crisis in the December Budget.
The Flood tribunal reached its second year and 100th day of public sittings without an end in sight. Contradictions between witnesses continued as the former Murphy group director, Mr Gabriel Grehan, contradicted the evidence given by the Tanaiste, Ms Harney, about a £30,000 payment to Mr Ray Burke.
According to figures from the Minister for Justice, the average overtime payment for prison officers is £20 an hour. The top 10 overtime-earning prison officers in the State have received an average of about £30,300 each in overtime payments for the first nine months of this year.
Thursday
An Irish Times/MRBI opinion poll showed the Government's satisfaction rating to be at its lowest since the Coalition was formed in 1997. It indicated a growing level of disillusionment with the Government which is believed to have been influenced by revelations from the Moriarty and Flood tribunals and the Dail Public Accounts Committee into the DIRT hearings. The poll also shows that both the Taoiseach and the Tanaiste have high individual ratings.
A special conference of the Irish Congress of Trade Unions voted overwhelmingly in favour of talks with the Government on a successor to the Partnership 2000 pay pact. However, there was disquiet as several public service union leaders said there was a need to bridge the widening gap between nurses' pay and other public service pay.
A bitter exchange over the Emerald Meats controversy erupted in the Dail when the Labour Party TD, Mr Pat Rabbitte, said the Minister for Agriculture, Mr Walsh, was involved in "crooked decisions" in dealings with the company over the licence for imported beef quotas. It came after revelations on RTE's Prime Time about a scheme operated between the Department of Agriculture and the Goodman Group.