The MABS report Lifting the Load points to both the alarming effects of mortgage debt on those in arrears, and also to the all-pervasiveness of discourses around home ownership during the boom. By Cian O'Callaghan.

The Lifting the Load report on mortgage arrears, commissioned by Waterford MABS and written by Michelle Norris and Simon Brooke, makes for a stimulating and often emotionally poignant read.  The study gives a fascinating insight into how households became indebted and how they are currently negotiating this indebtedness with lenders. Moreover, perhaps more than any other study completed thus far Lifting the Load offers a much-needed look at how the crisis in banking and property has affected the lives of individuals and families.

Rather than the media being to blame, it is politicians who are the real culprits in trivialising, distorting and denigrating our political process and discourse. By Vincent Browne.

Pat Rabbitte, in wistful recollection of Michael McDowell, recently quoted with approval from a newspaper article in which the former Progressive Democrat leader had written about "the over-weening power of the media as principals in our politics".

McDowell went on: "They [the media] are increasingly trivialising, distorting and denigrating our political process and discourse".

Just a year ago, Fine Gael and Labour were elected to government on promises that the huge colossus of debt from the banks' losses that had been inflicted on the Irish people would be reduced - ie, written down.

Seán Gallagher issued the following statement through his solicitors, Cassidy Law on Sunday. The statement calls for a "public inquiry into the production and airing" of the final presidential debate in 2011, broadcast on RTÉ's Frontline. Sean Gallagher's statement follows an allegation in the Sunday Independent that RTE staff provided an audience member with a question that deliberately set out to attack Gallagher in the debate. RTE has refuted the allegation.    

While Labour TDs support the Fiscal Treaty as “vital to our national interests”, the same party's MEPs take a quite different view. By Eoin Ó Broin.

Speaking to the Dáil on 28 February Labour leader Eamon Gilmore told the assembled deputies that the purpose of the so-called Fiscal Treaty was to help build a “thriving and prosperous European economy that has moved beyond the present crisis.” He said that, “It is part of a package of measures being put in place in Europe, to stabilise the situation in the Eurozone.”

In conclusion the Tánaiste said, “Endorsing the Treaty will be another important milestone for Ireland in our road to recovery” and doing so was “vital to our national interests.”

On the basis of these comments it seems pretty clear that the Labour Party believes that the content of the Fiscal Treaty is good for economic recovery, will help boost investment and jobs and that you should vote for it come referendum day.

The Government has been carefully reticent about signing up to an amendment to an EU treaty last month - one that is potentially very threatening to Ireland's interests. By Vincent Browne.

Just over four weeks ago, on 2 February, the Government signed a modification to an EU treaty that, according to Government ministers, contains a provision potentially very menacing to Irish interests.

No announcement was made of the signing of this modified treaty, no press release was issued (certainly none posted on the Department of Finance website) and no formal Dáil statement was made about this development, even though it had very considerable potential consequences for this country.

In answer to a Dáil question on 1 February and again on 14 February, Michael Noonan did acknowledge that the treaty in question was to be signed within a matter of days.

The opening salvos of the debate about the Fiscal Treaty from the right-wing political parties and the establishment media have attempted to ridicule the argument that this is an Austerity Treaty. Leo Varadkar called on the Socialist Party not to "lie about the treaty and what it's about" (quite a serious charge, especially considering it's over a week since I wrote to him seeking a public debate and have received no reply!). The Irish Times featured an editorial criticising my description of the referendum as 'people's opportunity to reject austerity at the ballot box.' and did not print my letter in response.

Socialist MEP Paul Murphy is in Greece this week, meeting with workers, trade unionists and members of parliament. He is reporting on his experiences for Politico. You can read his previous installments here and here; part three is below.

Last week brought several reminders of the ineptitude of Irish governments, past and present. By Vincent Browne.

A sense of hopelessness was in the air last Thursday. The announcement that the proposed Children's Hospital at the Mater site had been refused planning permission, on such palpably foreseeable grounds, confirmed the comprehensive ineptitude of the former government.

Not to be outdone, also last Thursday, the present government launched its Pathways To Work programme, founded on the fantasy that 100,000 jobs will fall from the heavens by 2016 - plus the menace aimed at an already devastated community, the unemployed.

There was also the acknowledgement last Thursday morning that frontline services would be curtailed because of the glut of incentivised retirements from the health services, on top of the chaos caused by incentivised retirements in our schools.

My own mood was also dampened by a depressing exposure last Thursday morning to a few hundred entrepreneurs at the Convention Centre, where speakers urged flexibility in labour markets, claiming this would be good for workers. "Flexibility" in labour markets means flexibility to fire workers on the limpest of pretexts, or on no pretext at all.