There was good news this week for companies involved in research, when Commissioner Maire Geoghegan-Quinn announced the latest EU round of financial support for research and innovation. €6.4 billion is to be spent over the next 14 months.

Q : I am a shareholder and director of a retail company in Galway. Due to a substantial fall in sales, the future of the company looks uncertain. I am concerned about personal guarantees I have given the bank for the company's borrowings. I have heard that I can transfer my properties to my wife and that the bank will not be able to touch them. Is this true? Will I have a lot of tax to pay?

Commentators often make comparisons between finance and betting. For example, many stock market critics think of them as a glorified form of a casino. While that may not be an accurate portrayal, there are some important lessons investors can learn from examining aspects of betting.

The circus is coming to town, but it's not the clown show, trapeze artist fest that you might expect. While there will be jugglers, stilt walkers, face painting and balloon animals, the European Employment Circus will recreate the greatest show on earth so that the promotion of jobs, skills and opportunities from local to European level are in the main ring.

Job-seekers in Galway could gain valuable digital skills and work experience within local businesses, thanks to a new initiative launched last week. WebActivate aims to create employment for hundreds of people throughout the country, while simultaneously providing small businesses with a way of establishing an online presence.

Links between Galway and the Isle of Man are set to be increased with the launch of new flights. Manx2.com launched the special service in a bid to stimulate tourism and e-commerce in both countries and improve connectivity between Galway and the Isle of Man.

A Galway based company has become the first company in Ireland to offer a mattress recycling service to its customers. The Bedroom Factory in Briarhill, in conjunction with its parent company and manufacturing facility in Portlaoise, has allocated part of its factory and warehouse to the project.

Over 300 jobs could be created at Ireland West Airport Knock if plans for an Enterprise Park at the airport are given the go-ahead. A government-led feasibility study into the establishment of the Enterprise Park has just been launched, at the request of the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Innovation Batt O'Keeffe.

A Galway construction company has secured a further six schools projects with a combined construction value in excess of €25 million. As well as the forthcoming construction of a new three-storey secondary school building and sports hall at Colaiste Iognáid ('The Jes') in Galway, Cordil Construction has signed contracts to extend and refurbish schools in Athlone, Limerick, Strokestown, Inchicore and Dun Laoghaire.

Participants in the SME Start-up Support Programme at GMIT are taking on the business world. Organic Weedkiller and Travel Packs have recently been successfully launched by SME start-up enterprises that took part in the four-month capability building programme at GMIT¹s Innovation in Business Centre (IiBC) Galway.