METRO Monday, November 2, 2009 D METRODigest State urged to save food jobs A FOOD industry lobby group has called for decisive action from the government to support jobs in the Irish food sector. Food And Drink Industry Ireland (FDII) has said that the state has failed to take pro- active steps to support jobs in important areas. The value of food and drink exports will drop by 1billion this year and 3,000 jobs have been lost, said FDII director Paul Kelly, adding, The government has demonstrated a lack of ambition and imagination. In a pre- budget submission, the FDII called for a credit insurance scheme. Nama to be law mid-November THE BILL establishing the 54billion bad bank Nama is expected to be enacted on November 12. Shares in AIB and Bank of Ireland, which will transfer loans to the National Asset Management Agency, fell sharply last week after Finance Minister Brian Lenihan said the launch of the scheme could be delayed by protracted debate in parliament. The shares rebounded later in the week after Lenihan sought to reassure markets, saying the legislation was on track to be enacted by mid-November. WHERE some say cheap as chips, the Germans say Scottish prices and the Scots are fed up with it. Now the Scottish National Party is to lodge a complaint with Germanys advertising watchdog about the use of the phrase to advertise discounted goods. Travel agents regularly advertise Schotten Preise and discount stores have the prefix Mac. THE Labour Party supports the plan to temporarily suspend the College Green bus gate until after Christmas. Cllr Andrew Montague said the party would back the proposal from to open the gate in the evenings, which will be debated tonight at a City Council meeting. However, it wants the gate which bans non-public-transport traffic from College Green during rush hour to stay closed during the mornings and to be restored in January. If the proposal is an attempt to quietly bury the bus gate we will vote against the motion, he said. Some traders claim the restrictions have hurt their business. Labour backs bus gate suspension TOP-LEVEL workers in the public sector could be facing salary cuts of up to 15 per cent if the recommendations of a new government report are enacted. The report into public sector pay, which claims Irelands top civil servants are earning more than their private sector counterparts, recommends cutting the pay of high-ranking civil servants by between eight and 15 per cent. It is believed the report will be used as a bargaining tool in government talks with the social partners ahead of the December budget. Civil servants facing 15% pay cuts IRISH backpacker Gearid Walsh (pictured) ignored pleas from his older brother to walk away from the row that cost him his life, an Australian court has heard. The 23-year-old Dubliner got into an argument with Australian Tobias Simmons, 28, after Simmons complained about the length of time it was taking Mr Walsh to pay for his food at a Sydney takeaway. Mr Walsh died four days after allegedly being punched by Simmons, who is facing charges of manslaughter. Gearid told to shun row Blonde girls: Fluffy (Joe Conlan) and Amanda Brunker pictured in Dundrum Town Centre yesterday to launch Christmas pantomime Fluffys Xmas Factor at the Mill Theatre in Dundrum opening on December 4. Picture: Marc OSullivan Thousands attend Knock apparition MORE THAN 10,000 people gathered at Knock shrine at the weekend hoping to witness an apparition of the Virgin Mary despite pleas from a bishop to ignore the event. Faith makes Knock pilgrims firm in hope, said Archbishop Michael Neary. They do not expect visions or seek further apparitions. He pleaded with pilgrims to disregard forecasts by so-called spiritual healer Joe Coleman that Mary would reappear at the shrine. Some of those present said they saw the Sun appear to dance in the sky. BRITISH politicians held talks with the authorities in Tripoli yesterday on compensation for victims of IRA violence in Northern Ireland. The cross-party group of three MPs and three members of the House of Lords met officials from Libyan leader Colonel Muammar Gaddafis regime to discuss the ongoing bid to secure financial redress for Libyas role in arming the Republican paramilitaries during the Troubles. Libya is thought to have supplied the IRA with Czech-made Semtex in the 1980s. Libya in talks on IRA compensation Halloween not as horrific as Garda fearedBY ROSS McDONAGHITS the night when killers, monsters and unholy beings wander the streets, and when blood and guts as well as horrific injuries are a common sight. With Halloween falling on a Saturday night for the first time in more than a decade, emergency services had braced themselves for a long night. But it turned out to be a relatively quiet affair compared with violence- plagued Halloweens of recent years. One of the most serious incidents oc- curred when a unit from Dublin Fire Brigade was attacked while dealing with a fire in Finglas. The crew had been called to the scene of a burning car at Fairlawn Road shortly after 10.30pm when they were set upon by a gang of at least 40 people. They threw stones and other missiles at the fire engine, smashing its wind- screen, but nobody was hurt. No arrests were made. According to the Garda, there was only a smattering of other public-order incidents, and nothing near the wide- spread violence that marred Halloween over the past number of years. Dublin Fire Brigade agreed it was busy, but not on the same scale as re- cent years, adding that heavy rain may have had an effect. Last year, the fire service responded to more than 800 calls, while the ambu- lance service received more than 500. Dozens of garda and firefighters were attacked and cars set alight across the country, while the cost of cleaning up bonfire damage was estimated at 1mil- lion. HIRsuTes you sIR! Brian Purcell from The Apprentice and Ellen Kavanagh of Waxperts help launch Waxweek from November 23 to 29. Proceeds of all treatments will go to MS Ireland Picture: Marc OSullivan index.html2.html3.html4.html5.html6.html7.html8.html9.html10.html11.html12.html13.html14.html15.html16.html17.html18.html19.html20.html21.html22.html23.html