Remember Michael McDowell? Well, wasn't he the justice minister who, back in 2006, threatened to shut down Dublin's casinos and then promptly did a U-turn by establishing a commission to take a "regulatory rather than prohibitive approach".

Since the summer's general election, however, the silence has been deafening which can only lead one to believe that the old status quo -- where casinos are illegal but tolerated -- is the current state of play.

All that may be about to change.

Teddy Hickson's Fitzwilliam Casino & Card Club obviously has had a sniff that some recommendations are about to emanate from Brian Lenihan's department and Teddy & Co would seem confident that the new Minister for Justice won't be as Calvinist as his predecessor.

The Fitzwilliam Street operation -- ironically located in a former prayer hall -- has just advertised for a business development manager to work in what it describes as "a new industry sector about to undergo government regulation".

Kiwis have designs on 'Kerry Model'

While one time starlet Kerry Group may be struggling to find fans amongst stock market investors -- at under 20 bucks its share price is below where it was 30 months ago -- it has been receiving quite the plaudits in the New Zealand media.

Apparently Fonterra, the Kiwi food giant which morphed out of the New Zealand Dairy Board, has set its sights on the "Kerry Model" as it prepares for a flotation that is expected to value it at about NZ$5bn.

New Zealand is geographically positioned to take advantage of surging Chinese and Indian food markets and Fonterra's executives want to get the readies in place for expansion.

However, like their Irish soil brothers, the New Zealand farming community which currently own Fonterra through a co-op structure, have been loathe to cash in any of their stakes for fear of losing "control".

Enter Kerry spokesman Frank Hayes, who has been popping up in the New Zealand media in an effort to explain the Kerry model.

"The issue of control, we've always felt, has been overstressed," chimed in Hayes.

"Control is the confidence in your strategy, confidence in your leadership and in the ability of the group to deliver."

No doubt his words will be a confidence boost for the company's wealth of Irish stockholders.

Bank chief's dividends talk keeps us guessing

Speaking of communication skills, could somebody possibly decipher Bank of Ireland chief Brian Goggin's post-results comments on the bank's dividend policy?

Obviously, one of the major sources of relief for battered shareholders has been the generous dividend cheques dispatched from Baggot Street.

Those plucky punters, who reckon the share price is at or near the bottom, are also extra keen to ensure that the bank's current yield of almost 6pc is kept nice and beefy as they wait for the upswing.

However, Goggin obviously doesn't like to be too specific these days.

His response to a legitimate question from a Sunday newspaper journalist as to the dividend policy was the following curious statement: "What we've said about the dividend in the past, once we got back to a payout ratio on the 40 to 45pc order, we said that going forward our dividend declaration would reflect our view on the underlying sustainable earnings trajectory within the business."

There we are then. Clear as...

Chances are we'll be caught by an Aussie speed trap

Babcock & Brown may be the most high-profile Australian concern doing business in Ireland, but the word around the campfire down under is that they are shortly to be joined in the Irish consumer's consciousness by Aussie speed camera provider Redflex.

Redflex has profitably proved to be the bane of motorists the world over.

It has just installed its 1,000th camera in the US and, in August, won the AUS$150m seven-year contract to snare errant drivers in the state of Victoria.

The company website proclaims that not alone does itmanufacture and install state-of-the-art speed cameras, but it also produces the "leading red light violation monitoring system in the photo enhancement industry".

Although no word has emanated from Phoenix Park as to who has been successful in the tender process, 'The Australian' newspaper has no doubts. In a story headlined "Moving Statutes", the paper claims that "our leprechaun insists that Dublin has ruled in favour of Redflex and chums.

The news may take weeks to emerge as the gardai need sign-off from the Department of Justice and other bureaucratic organs".

With communication skills like that, it's little wonder that Australia is a world leader in the media game.