On Friday Fórsa issued a statement to say unions should invoke a review clause in the Building Momentum public service agreement, due to sustained high inflation. The statement was picked up by several media outlets, including the Irish Times.

On Saturday, the Indo reported that the war on Ukraine "is set to scupper post-pandemic recovery and could jeopardise public service funding at Budget time," while the front page of the Business Post yesterday reported that Ireland and other European countries "face the very real prospect of an economic recession as the impact of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine continues to unfold."

Elsewhere in the Post, one aviation chief has warned that inflation in the price of key raw materials and rising interest rates will mean higher air fares for consumers this year, and there's concern that St Patrick's Day festivities could lead to a surge in Covid-19 cases, as hospitilisations with the virus are at their highest since mid-January.

Zen

"Connection is everything" says Claudia Hammond, professor of the public understanding of psychology at the University of Sussex and presenter of the documentary The Anatomy of Kindness. Hammond is one of the contributors to Donna Ferguson's article about why being kind is so good for us.

Also, a defiant and moving chorus from Odessa.

Have a great week.

Niall