Developer takes council to court; O’Leary’s texts; and taking on tax avoidance

Developer Lioncor is taking a High Court action against Dun Laoghaire Rathdown County Council after planners refused it permission to build 445 homes. Barry O'Halloran reports that council planners refused a Lioncor subsidiary permission for 404 apartments and 41 houses in Cherrywood, Co Dublin.

The High Court has directed that a search be made of Ryanair group chief executive Michael O'Leary's messages as part of an action being taken by the airline's action over a threatened 2019 pilots' strike. The matter arose in court on Thursday.

Irish inflation shot to a 14-year high in October as rising energy costs, supply shortages and increased consumer demand drove up prices, writes Eoin Burke-Kennedy. Separately, the European Commission is forecasting Irish GDP growth of 14.6 per cent for this year, while warning that inflation will increase further next year. Eoin also has that story.

In his Caveat column, Mark Paul considers tax avoidance – the personal rather than the corporate kind. He argues it may only be a matter of time before international focus moves on from businesses avoiding tax to land on personal tax avoidance by rich and powerful individuals.

Clanwilliam to introduce AI-powered dictation software for healthcare

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School friends’ love of coding makes them millionaires

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European Commission doubles growth forecast for Irish economy

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Profits up six-fold at Jellybean Factory

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Joe Brennan takes an in-depth look at what' has been going on in the insurance broker market of late, wondering if consolidation and pricing have reached a peak. He speaks to Jim Campion, who this week agreed to sell his family's brokerage to a UK intermediary for more than €70 million.

John FitzGerald delves into the benefits of forestry in battling climate change, positing that in Ireland there is plenty of potential to build back the carbon-dioxide-absorbing forests we last had in the 17th century. He also calls for a focus on timber-based construction, which would allow us to reduce emissions from cement.

As Cop26 reaches a mixed close, Andrew Edgecliffe-Johnson and Simon Mundy ask if plans for big business to cut emissions are actually credible, given they carry no obligation to change behaviour in the near future.

In our Work section, Olive Keogh looks at research that identifies five key characteristics in companies that perform well under pressure. The qualities include empowering employees to lead for change and turning data into a competitive advantage.

Our Wild Goose this week is London-based fashion designer Claire O'Connor, who tells Barbara McCarthy about her life dressing the rich and famous. The Dubliner and graduate of Grafton Academy recalls that landing in London the first time without knowing anybody was "really tough".

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