Signing you in

If you’re a parent of school-goers, there’s no need to use up that annual leave day this week it would seem. Peace has broken out and the machinery of industrial dispute resolution is about to work its magic.

As of this morning, the old social partners – who we all feared were poised for a painful break-up – are talking again. The Workplace Relations Commission is playing host to the two sides after weeks of deadlock and will endeavour to weave a spell that reunites them.

Wednesday’s planned second day of industrial action won’t happen and the consensus appears to be that the players will now dance the dance, agree on a big number and do the deed.

The Taoiseach welcomed the commencement of the process yesterday and said it would need to deliver “value for money”. Micheál Martin rejected the suggestion from that cheeky chappie Michael O’Leary that he would be “rolling over” in negotiations.

The unions have also pointed out that trust has taken a bit of a bruising over the last little while and there’ll be no rush to jump into bed just yet.

The criminal defence solicitors have upped their action – and this morning withdrew all services for the day. The dispute over Jim O’Callaghan’s flat-fee payment system has rumbled on all summer and a backlog of cases is rapidly building up within the courts system.

Not only this, but the industrial action has led to almost 90 High Court cases alleging unlawful detention.

But the up and down of the public sector tiff is that the placards can be stowed away while everybody awaits the renewal of vows.

The French president and his government have watched as peaceful school protests, calling for more public spending, have been overtaken by wild violence and looting on the country’s streets.

The French cabinet was in emergency session last night as Macron said there was no place for violence in French society. Parts of Paris, Bordeaux, Nice and Marseilles have seen streets barricaded and historic buildings set alight.

More than 2,000 people have been arrested and more than 600 members of the police and emergency services injured.

The government there is blaming the actions on the “ultra-left”. The opposition parties have asked how the state didn’t see this all coming and are demanding that heads roll. Politically speaking, that is.

Macron however is holding the line and, according to the Elysée, has declined the offer of interior minister Laurent Nuñez to resign.

You’d suspect it’ll hardly get sorted out at the French equivalent of Lansdowne House.

One of the items on the agenda at said Lansdowne House in Dublin’s Ballsbridge will be the effect that high fuel costs are having on the cost of living.

There won’t be much relief there for a while – what with Ukraine hitting Russian refineries in St Petersburg with its largest drone attack on the city.

Kyiv sent a very clear signal to Donald Trump and his decision to buy Russian diesel. Russia, meanwhile, again pummelled Ukrainian energy sites. Watch the price at the pumps.

Speaking of the cost of living, the Finance Bill is up for debate this week.

The Bill, which gives effect to the budget (remember that?), is set to include a new derelict property tax.

Owners of such properties will have to show they intend on doing something to tidy up the place if they want to avoid paying a 7 per cent tariff. Local authorities will be required to draw up lists of derelict sites and hand them over to the no-nonsense types that inhabit the offices of the Revenue.

On the matter of properties, councillors in south Dublin could tonight decide to lift a ban on the building of 500 homes.

The plans in question focus on land belonging to billionaire businessmen John Magnier and JP McManus close to Lucan.

The kibosh was put on the proposal after councillors received more than 1,600 submissions opposing the whole thing. But the council chief executive has asked them to reconsider. Standing in support of the plan are the Office of Public Works and the National Transport Authority.

Finally, later in the week it is expected the family of the late Brian Stack, the chief prison officer at Portlaoise Prison who was shot by the IRA 43 years ago and later died in hospital, will receive a formal State apology in relation to the mishandling of three separate Garda investigations into his murder.

The Taoiseach is due to deliver the apology on Wednesday in the Dáil after a meeting with the family.