A glance at the week that was
We now know
Ireland had the highest fertility ratein the European Union in 2007, according to new Central Statistics Office data, with Irish women having an average of 2.05 children that year, compared with 1.31 in Poland and 1.92 in Britain.
Dublin is the 26th best city in the worldin which to live, says this year's worldwide quality-of-living survey from Mercer, in a list topped by Vienna, with Zurich and Geneva in second and third places.
Irish householders and businesses are still, on average, paying more for electricitythan their European counterparts, though the gap is closing, according to figures from the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland.
Nul points please
Tough economic times have an impact on even the most sacred events, and this year's Eurovision Song Contestis no exception. What with the Czech Republic, Montenegro, Andorra and Hungary already dropping out due to lack of funds, host country Norway is threatening to do the same next year, for fear it will repeat last year's win (Alexander Rybak, below) and be landed with playing host again. Tonight's show is setting the country back €26.5 million, with public broadcaster NRK having to sell its rights to the World Cup to finance the contest.
"In case you're wondering who's responsible, I take responsibility"
US president Barack Obamaon his handling of the BP oil spill
Don’t take a hike
Song contests may be bad for the wallet, but hiking can have its own financial perils, particularly if it's engaged in without the correct attire. In Switzerland a hiker was recently fined for taking his mountain rambles though the Swiss canton of Appenzell in his birthday suit. The man in question is now appealing the fine in court, given that Swiss federal law states that public nudity is not a crime. Appenzell slapped the fine on the the man on foot of a new public-order law, introduced last year, which permits naked hikers to be fined.
The numbers
61,086
The backlog of passport applications as a result of an ongoing dispute at the Passport Office.
60
The percentage of prisoners likely to reoffend within a few years of release, according to a new report by the Irish Penal Reform Trust.
€200
The new parking levy, to come into operation this summer.
