Hope yet for Bewleys; power cut on pay deal; and quarantine under pressure

Developer Johnny Ronan's Ronan Group Real Estate has said it remains hopeful that Bewley's will reopen its historic Grafton Street cafe next Monday, writes Ronald Quinlan, despite the company's recent announcement that it was closing its doors for good.

An agreement on pay and pensions for electriciansput in place by the Minister for Business, Heather Humphreys, has been ruled unconstitutional and invalid in the High Court in a decision that could have very serious implications for tens of thousands of construction workers and the Government.

Also posing headaches for Cabinet, an aviation recovery taskforce put in place by Minister Shane Ross says the Government should axe its controversial Covid-19 quarantine on incoming passengers by next week. Barry O'Halloran explains why.

Back at ground level, Galway-based CitySwift has rolled out new technology aimed at easing bus commuters' fears about travelling during the coronavirus pandemic by letting them know which buses have space before they arrive at the stop. Charlie Taylor finds out how it works.

Corporation tax ‘article of faith’ may be about to unravel

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CitySwift lets passengers know how full buses are

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Irish consumers’ rally fuels hopes economic shock will be less than feared

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Irish commercial property deals slump most in EU amid Covid-19

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IPL, the pastics group that makes wheelie bins among other things, has fallen foul of shareholder and solicitor Noel Smyth after an agm held virtually because of the Covid pandemic. Smyth says he will report Irish-based but Toronto-listed group to the stock market regulator after he says he was unable to ask questions at last night's meeting. Barry O'Halloran reports.

US president Donald Trump's sweeping restrictions on immigration will damage both the Irish and US economies as they struggle to recover from the coronavirus pandemic, the American Chamber of Commerce Ireland has said., writs Colin Gleeson

On a more upbeat note, generic medicine is a fast-track business but Chanelle's 72-year-old founder Michael Burke is showing no sign of slipping off the pace as he starts selling hi Spot On pet worming and flea products into the US market from a dedicated manufacturing plant in Loughrea.

Meanwhile, Dublin insurance broker Arachas is looking to double the size of its business over the next five years as its private equity owner merge it with their UK brokerage operation. Joe Brennan has the details.

Finally, the value of commercial property deals in Ireland slumped 79 per cent during the height of Covid-19 restrictions, writes Joe Brennan. That made it the Irish market the worst performer across the European Union, according to BNP Paribas Real Estate.

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