QUOTES OF THE WEEK
“The Taoiseach and Prime Minister have had a detailed and constructive discussion. Both continue to believe that a deal is in everybody’s interest. They agreed that they could see a pathway to a possible deal.” Leo Varadkar and Boris Johnson suggest a Brexit deal is possible after meeting at a country manor on the Wirral
“Mark my words, we are not there yet.” Tanaiste Simon Coveney sounding a note of warning about Brexit optimism
“They didn’t help us in the Second World War, they didn’t help us with Normandy...” Donald Trump tries to justify the US abandoning its Kurdish allies in Syria
“To be told a year ago that I was persona non grata in the Vatican, I found that so profoundly hurtful.” Mary McAleese on being excluded from a Vatican conference last year
‘‘The older you get, the heavier the baggage becomes that you haven’t sorted through. So you run.” Bruce Springsteen in the documentary Western Stars
“The city council was aware of an extraordinary level of intimidation and criminal activity directed at the contractor’s staff, the city council’s own staff and at the building site.” Dublin City Council spokesperson after it was revealed that massive sums of protection money were paid to two well-known Dublin criminals
“It’s been tough keeping it to myself and not making any comment at all, especially when the stories have been leaked, however I had to. Now I know for certain which account/ individual it’s come from. It’s... Rebekah Vardy’s account.” Coleen Rooney breaks silence about who was feeding her private information to the UK tabloids
“This is a Budget that has been developed in the shadow of Brexit. And the context for Brexit has now shifted to No Deal as our central assumption.” Finance Minister Paschal Donohoe delivers his Budget speech last Tuesday
“We were not in a position to provide pension increases for all.” Social Protection Minister Regina Doherty after the pensioners failed to secure €5 a week in the Budget
“It is ridiculous that there was no plan B, because it isn’t news that typhoons hit Japan.” Italian rugby player Sergio Parisse on match cancellations at the Rugby World Cup
“I only spoke to her briefly and said, ‘I got it’, and she sounded she was so surprised that her knees almost gave way.” Nobel Prize in Chemistry winner Akira Yoshino on breaking the news of the award to his wife
“One should never take prizes too seriously. They appeal to the eternal child within, and have nothing to do with one’s work. I’ve said it before, and I say it again, I’d be a poor writer indeed if the getting or not getting of a prize influenced what I write and how I write it.” Novelist John Banville after he received hoax calls telling him he had won the Nobel Prize for Literature