#irish-politics

#irish-politics

Speaking as he arrived at the Galway West count centre, Micheál Martin said: "Electorally, the cost of living has clearly impacted hugely on people." Asked if there would be a cost-of-living package in the budget, he said: "I think we're going to reflect the realities of how people are feeling as best we can in the budget."

"Orla was a vibrant and joyful person," read her death notice on RIP.ie. "A designer, an actor, a politician, a presenter, Orla lived life to the full. "She was a master improviser in the kitchen, played a vicious hand at cards, and always braved a wintery swim. She loved people and dogs, but not necessarily in that order. "Her laughter, mischief and determination will be missed by us all."

Councillors at the May meeting of the Clonmel Borough District voted to give the freedom of the town to the President, following a motion from Mayor of Clonmel councillor Pat English. Cllr English's motion said that the freedom of the borough should be conferred on President Connolly for her "outstanding contribution to the academic, cultural, artistic and political life" in Ireland, and as a token of the high esteem with which she is held by the people of Clonmel.

The new president's actions have raised eyebrows at Leinster House, although nobody is yet saying a word. This goes to the sometimes tense relationship between a Head of State and the Government.

A great deal of intelligence which I read communicated, both explicitly and implicitly, that Adams was a senior member of the IRA Army Council and the de facto leader of the IRA.

The 24/7 grind of a politician is not for the faint-hearted as the likes of Simon Coveney and Catherine Martin will tell you. Former TDs who stood down or lost their Dáil seat at the last general election say why they haven't looked back.

Michael Healy-Rae and Michael Lowry pulled all the strings to keep Taoiseach in check, but our European allies won't be at all impressed

Confucius, China's most famous philosopher, was asked by a student if there was one word that could represent a guiding principle in life. His answer was "shu" - meaning a reciprocal arrangement exists between yourself and others, so consider their needs when you do something. It's a good rule of thumb for any individual, but governments should particularly bear it in mind, because a mutual connection exists between a government and its electorate that any administration ignores at its peril.

Dáil Éireann was far from quiet in 2025, even before you account for the sky-rocketing decibel levels that kicked the year off as a speaking row broke out and delayed the small matter of getting some actual work done. As the months unfolded, we had a presidential race that took a while to get going before provoking some of the biggest headlines of the year, the fallout of which is still being reckoned with.

Soon after Ireland passed its Gender Recognition Act in 2015, Kevin Humphreys, a Labour politician, visited a residential home for senior citizens where an older woman thanked him for the new law. It was Humphreys who, as the minister of state for social protection 10 years ago, guided through the legislation that has meant transgender people in Ireland can apply to have their lived gender legally recognised by the state through a simple self-certification process.

It's been a time of celebration for some, of speaking out against terrible crimes for others, of 1990s nostalgia, major upheaval, and more. Our writers Kim Bielenberg, Kirsty Blake Knox, John Meagher and Tanya Sweeney take you through it all. It was the year of new faces at the Áras and in the Vatican;

The money was spent on South American male escorts and on drugs including crystal meth, GHB and cocaine A video on McKiernan's phone showed him smoking a crack pipe while lying in bed with an individual The Fine Gael councillor made history in 2011 when he was elected the youngest ever chairman of Cavan County Council A former cathaoirleach of Cavan County Council has been jailed for two years and nine months, after stealing more than €172,000 from a mental health housing charity.

Irish citizens who were part of a flotilla that tried to bring aid to Gaza when they were detained by Israeli authorities have urged politicians to ensure they "hold Israel accountable"

A government TD has revealed how his family has been plunged into the "most immense shock and grief" following the deaths of his uncle and first cousin within days of one another.

The Occupied Territories Bill must be passed before Christmas, the combined Opposition demanded at Leinster House today.

We look at those who have tried, and failed, to fix the mess Every month when he was housing minister, Eoghan Murphy had to face the media to talk about the spiralling numbers of homeless people in Ireland. As the beleaguered minister made his way down the grand staircase at Government buildings to announce the inevitably grim news, a cabinet colleague muttered the words of the playwright Samuel Beckett in his ear:

As the dust continues to settle on a presidential campaign defined by apathy, and Government parties continue to question where it all went wrong for them (and no I don't believe it all comes down to poor judgment or poor candidates, although those things remain true), that Micheál Martin ever believed that Jim Gavin had some kind of star quality still leaves me bewildered. There's a reason I think Catherine Connolly ran rings around her opponents.

Left-wing independent Catherine Connolly, 68, secured 63% of votes in a landslide election victory on Saturday, comfortably defeating her center-right rival, former Cabinet minister Heather Humphreys. The politician won after Ireland's left-leaning opposition parties, including Sinn Féin, united to back her, and she is expected to be a voice unafraid to challenge Ireland's center-right government.

Ireland's new president, Catherine Connolly, is a proud leftist who has served for almost a decade as an independent socialist member of the Irish parliament (Dáil Éireann), a blunt critic of the failures of neoliberalism and corporate globalization, and a visionary advocate for the sort of dramatic interventions that are needed to address the economic inequality that has made life increasingly unaffordable for working-class families.

Fianna Fáil TD James O'Connor was given a verbal thick ear on RTÉ by his party leader for claiming Mr Martin behaved like France's Le Roi Soleil (Sun King). Mr Martin was selflessly not setting his sights on a similar reign of 72 years - the longest of any monarch in history. Therefore, the TD had to be bang out of order - his party leader he did not rule from a gilded throne, nor was he ever a top-down leader.

Former Fine Gael minister said 'smear the bejaysus' out of Catherine Connolly, but never mentioned own role in Áras campaign Pundit has been working with Micheál Martin's party on media training for politicians since last year's elections