So, Enda Kenny and his lackeys can stay up through the night to ram ‘emergency’ legislation through the Dail, copper-fastening billions of bankers’ gambling debt on the Irish people, but when he’s presented with a 1,000-page report detailing what we already knew – of 70 years of State-sanctioned abuse of vulnerable girls and women in Magdalene laundries - he says he needs “space” and “time” to reflect.

The turn out on the ICTU ‘Lift the Debt’ burden was fantastic. One hundred thousand people took part and showed that they did not believe the government lies about the ‘victory’ they had achieved on the promissory note.

The vast majority who took part are opposed to the government grovelling to the EU and accepting the huge Anglo debt. They know that they and their children are ‘on the hook’ to pay €64 billion of private bank debt.

But if there was a mood to resist among the mass of people who took part on the marches, it was not matched by the leaders on the ICTU.

Unions in Greece have called a general strike on 20 February against a government clampdown on strikers.The government had sent police to hand striking metro workers an order to return to work or face prison.

Athens metro workers struck last month against a pay cut for workers in public transport and utilities. Workers across Greece struck in solidarity with the metro workers.

Rail workers took action on Thursday of last week. Hospital workers walked out against budget cuts on the same day.

Up to 7,000 people took to the streets of Cork on Saturday 9th February as part of the nationwide day of protest organized by the Irish Congress of Trade Unions.

Crowds began to gather near the SIPTU offices on Lapp's Quay from 12.30 onwards, an hour and a half ahead of the scheduled start of a march through the city.

In a statement following the Taoiseach’s announcement of a government deal with the ECB on the Anglo promissory note, Richard Boyd Barrett, People Before Profit/ULA Finance spokesperson said

"The Taoiseach’s speech and the government’s presentation of the promissory note deal was an attempt to hoodwink the Irish people and would ensure that cuts and austerity will continue to be imposed on ordinary Irish citizens for years to come to pay Anglo’s gambling debts."

Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett TD, said,

The recent announcement by the Bundesbank, that it is to seek the repatriation of Germany’s reserves of physical gold, currently held in New York and Paris, is a highly significant development in the on-going crisis in the financial system. As recently as three months ago, the German Central Bank was trenchantly opposed to such a suggestion and adamant that it was, in fact, of intrinsic importance to Germany that it continued to store physical gold reserves in New York and London that would be immediately available as collateral against dollar or Sterling denominated liquidity.

Occupation of Cork City Council chamber by anti property tax activists Monday evening Jan 29th.

The meeting of Cork City Council was adjourned following an occupation of the council chamber by more than 100 members of the Campaign Against Household and Water Taxes. A banner with the words "axe the tax or watch your vote collapse" has been unfurled. Deafening chanting of 'labour, labour, labour, out out out' and 'no way we won't pay' are echoing around the chamber

The Campaign Against the Household and Water Taxes is determined to bring the anger of its members over the imposition of property charges and other austerity measures directly to the politicians of the coalition.

The local Waterford City campaign, on hearing of an (non-publicised) internal meeting of city and county Labour Party members to be addressed by Minister Joan Burton, decided to organise a protest outside the venue.

Spain’s ruling Government party, The Partido Popular (PP), has been rocked by a political and financial scandal, involving accusations of bribery, money-laundering and tax evasion, that has gone largely unreported in the mainstream media both here in Ireland and the UK. Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy has been implicated in the scandal that involves allegations of illegal, under the counter, payments to senior members of the PP dating back to 1989.