Advocates are concerned the public will lose interest if they aren’t driving major reforms; sceptics worry that politicians are outsourcing difficult questions to people with neither expertise nor mandate.
The role of the presidency has changed dramatically in the last three decades, and what had previously been considered fairly dull elections have been enlivened in recent years with a range of different candidates and visions for the office.
If politicians can’t do deliver realistic cost projections and timetables, they need to make sure the public grasp the full scale of the eventual benefits.
Being a global hub for data centres is brings huge benefits to Ireland – but demand for power is growing much faster than the supply of clean energy.
With Sinn Féin riding high on the back of voters’ dissatisfaction with the economy, the temptation to cash in Dublin’s corporation tax bounty will be great.
Around three quarters of all transatlantic cables in the northern hemisphere pass through or near its waters – yet Dublin spends just 0.2 per cent of GDP on defence.
Statistics suggest that rents have increased by an average of 63 per cent since 2015. Demand for housing outstrips supply, and house prices continue to rise year on year.
If Sunak reaches a deal on the Northern Ireland Protocol, he will need it endorsed by DUP politicians with whom he has almost nothing in common.
This year 36 government ministers and other representatives will bring Dublin’s message to 74 cities in 44 countries around the world.
Ironically enough, Nandy neglected to mention that she herself had said in 2021 that she was “appalled” that a hotel in her constituency was being used to accommodate asylum-seekers,
On both sides of the water, politicians are torn between urgent national need and powerful local objections to new development.
It was made at the same time that the police were opening a fraud investigation into the party over alleged misuse of its referendum fighting fund.
The Seanad in Dublin comprises people chosen by county councillors, the government, and graduates of certain universities. This week, it celebrated its centenary.
With war ranging in Europe and the bulk of Russia’s fighting capacity deployed in a NATO-adjacent country, now is not the time for playing dated grievance politics with the transatlantic alliance.