comment and analysis

This is my father and it's the first time we met
This is my father and it's the first time we met
The Mick Clifford Podcast: Michael Moynihan explores the GAA’s future in new book
The Mick Clifford Podcast: Michael Moynihan explores the GAA’s future in new book
Irish Examiner journalist Michael Moynihan discusses the GAA’s future, exploring its growing popularity, challenges, and the forces shaping its direction

 Listen | Thu, 23 Oct, 2025

 Listen |
Inclusive education schemes must go on so more first-generation graduates can change their family stories forever
Inclusive education schemes must go on so more first-generation graduates can change their family stories forever
We have to protect Ireland’s investment in education and the social-mobility programmes that made university accessible to families like mine, writes Cian O'Donnell

Thu, 23 Oct, 2025

Depression, alcohol and domestic violence abuse stock
Joining the dots between alcohol and domestic violence
Another Budget has passed in which the links between alcohol and domestic violence are not accounted for, and the alcohol industry has not been made to pay for the damage its product causes, write Rachel Fayne, Michelle Walsh and Sheila Gilheany

Thu, 23 Oct, 2025

Google’s AI Data Protection Practices Probed by Irish Regulator
S Ireland is the world's second-largest importer of Israeli goods. We've sold our morals
Ireland has become the world’s second-largest importer of Israeli goods, because we’ve become a middleman in the transfer-pricing maze of the tech sector, a new report shows

Thu, 23 Oct, 2025

Louise Burne: If this was Humphreys’ last chance, she didn’t take it
Louise Burne: If this was Humphreys’ last chance, she didn’t take it
The final debate between Catherine Connolly and Heather Humphreys lacked fire, offering voters little new insight ahead of polling day

Wed, 22 Oct, 2025

Law scale rules regulations
We shouldn't take the cab rank rule for granted in Ireland's justice system
In a democracy everyone has the right to legal representation — even murderers, and, yes, banks

Tue, 21 Oct, 2025

A Mural of Independent Presidential Candidate Catherine Connolly by artist Emmalene Blake on South Dock Road, Dublin.
Mick Clifford: Connolly bank case row shows how outrage depends on who’s in the firing line
Fine Gael’s attack on Catherine Connolly over her legal work has sparked righteous fury — but the outrage rings hollow

Tue, 21 Oct, 2025

Book extract: Jack Lynch's TV broadcast that broke the mould
Book extract: Jack Lynch's TV broadcast that broke the mould
In an extract from ‘I’m Glad You Asked Me That: The Political Years’, Terry Prone recalls her husband Tom Savage helping Jack Lynch pull off a media masterstroke in 1977

Tue, 21 Oct, 2025

Health insurance
As consumers face spiralling health insurance costs, what are their options?
Don’t let your cover auto-renew — at the very least ring your provider and challenge them to check all their plans for you, writes health insurance expert Dermot Goode

Tue, 21 Oct, 2025

Irish presidential election
Leadership X-ray? Why presidential debates reveal less than you think
Presidential candidates can’t win elections with one debate, but they can lose them with a bad one, writes behavioural scientist Nuala Walsh ahead of the final debate between Catherine Connolly and Heather Humphreys

Tue, 21 Oct, 2025

Paul Hosford: Fine Gael's US-style attack video may be a new departure in Irish politics
Paul Hosford: Fine Gael's US-style attack video may be a new departure in Irish politics
The clip uses quotes without context: Catherine Connolly's remarks about banks came during the tracker mortgage scandal in 2017, and were echoed across the political spectrum

Mon, 20 Oct, 2025

Handsome young man moving into his new home
Too many renters in Ireland have zero legal protections
People who live in digs, spare rooms, sheds or sublets fall outside every legal protection available to tenants — and they are nothing more than a cash cow to policymakers

Mon, 20 Oct, 2025

Is this presidential contest Ireland's 'first podcast election'?
Is this presidential contest Ireland's 'first podcast election'?
Catherine Connolly and Donald Trump don't have much in common ideologically, but both their campaigns have focused heavily on podcasts, with a different style to traditional media interviews 

Mon, 20 Oct, 2025

Depressed woman talking to her pchychologist closeup
S Mild, moderate, or severe? Proposed regulations for therapists proving explosive
The last decade has seen an explosion in the number of people seeking out a talking therapy — but new regulations separating counsellors from psychotherapists could present problems for both professional and patient.

Mon, 20 Oct, 2025

Irish presidential election
Louise Burne: Connolly is still the election favourite — but don’t write off Humphreys yet
Despite complaints about the repetitiveness of media debates, you can't rule out one of the candidates being dealt a fatal blow during Tuesday's 'Prime Time' showdown

Sun, 19 Oct, 2025

Sharm El Sheikh Peace Summit
Trump declares ‘war is over’ in Gaza — but behind the spectacle, peace looks more like performance
Trump’s so-called Gaza peace plan brings applause and pageantry, but beneath the spectacle lies a fragile and self-serving illusion

Sat, 18 Oct, 2025

Irish Children's Referendum
Theresa Reidy: Presidential election fallout leaves many 'what ifs'
The race for the Áras has seen political judgements questioned and party leaders scrutinised

Fri, 17 Oct, 2025

Mid adult woman in supermarket holding milk
Five myths about the milk 'price war' going on in Ireland's supermarkets
This price war has nothing to do with helping consumers make ends meet, but about deflecting attention away from supermarkets. Every time there’s a focus on grocery prices being in 'rip-off' territory, there’s a pretend price war, writes Eoin McGettigan

Fri, 17 Oct, 2025

We should cherish our independent institutions
We should cherish our independent institutions
As Donald Trump takes a wrecking ball to America's institutional framework, David Gwynn Morgan examines the independent institutions that keep Ireland ticking over

Fri, 17 Oct, 2025

The Mick Clifford Podcast: Will Trump's peace plan for Gaza work? 
The Mick Clifford Podcast: Will Trump's peace plan for Gaza work? 
Donald Trump has brokered a 20-point peace plan that could potentially ensure both peace and justice in an area that has been devastated

 Listen | Thu, 16 Oct, 2025

 Listen |
Skims’ Ultimate Bush Knickers: The fashion trend no one asked for
Skims’ Ultimate Bush Knickers: The fashion trend no one asked for
Let’s consider the obvious: women have been wearing underwear for centuries — briefs, boyshorts, high-cuts, thongs, you name it. The idea that we now need an undergarment featuring fake pubic hair feels like a satirical sketch from 'Saturday Night Live', not a serious offering from a billion-dollar brand, writes Pat Kane, founder of Reuzi

Thu, 16 Oct, 2025

Irish presidential election
Paul Hosford: Poll puts Connolly on top as presidential race heads into final week
The last seven days of this race will be crucial for both sides 

Thu, 16 Oct, 2025

Waiting in court
Climate now touches every area of law
While the courtroom is no substitute for political leadership on climate change, it has become an indispensable forum for accountability

Thu, 16 Oct, 2025

Louise Burne: Harvey’s grieving family deserve better than parties going through the motions
Louise Burne: Harvey’s grieving family deserve better than parties going through the motions
Aontú's motion of no confidence in the Tánaiste, and the Government's own confidence motion designed to forestall it, achieve precisely zero for children with spinal issues

Wed, 15 Oct, 2025

We're going to war on dereliction — but not yet
We're going to war on dereliction — but not yet
A small but radical transfer of responsibility might give the derelict property tax a real impact, but it's taking too long, write Jude Sherry and Frank O'Connor of #DerelictIreland

Wed, 15 Oct, 2025

AI prompt chat bot. Search website to generate data, text or image. Man using computer with artificial intelligence app. Virtual
David O'Mahony: History tells us betting on AI bubble is a bad idea
Future generations may wonder why we collectively jumped off a virtual bridge chasing digital tulips, writes David O'Mahony

Wed, 15 Oct, 2025

Heritage is about more than flags or old buildings
Heritage is about more than flags or old buildings
Our heritage is found not only in old castles but in ordinary people's voices and in the fragile documents that connect us to previous generations. We must work to preserve them, writes Virginia Teehan, CEO of the Heritage Council

Wed, 15 Oct, 2025

Irish presidential election
Constant stream of presidential debates beginning to feel like 'Groundhog Day'
Last year's general election saw just two broadcast debates. The presidential election has already seen five debates, and there's over a week to go

Tue, 14 Oct, 2025

Joe Brolly fallout: The slippery slope that leads to pornification of society
Joe Brolly fallout: The slippery slope that leads to pornification of society
We like to think the days of reducing women to sexual objects are behind us, but recent stories are proof they are not

Tue, 14 Oct, 2025

PALESTINIAN-ISRAEL-GAZA-CONFLICT
Dorcha Lee: Implementation of Gaza ceasefire deal gets off to shaky start
Hamas has consolidated its control over areas of Gaza and a security vacuum has developed

Tue, 14 Oct, 2025

Mature Caucasian Female Patient and Asian Female Doctor in Doctor's Office
'Your symptoms are part of being a woman': UCC study to explore diagnostic delays for women
Women in Ireland wait years for diagnosis of chronic health conditions — we need to focus on listening

Tue, 14 Oct, 2025

Irish presidential election
Fine Gael eyes centre-left as accusations of smear campaign gather momentum 
Fine Gael now faces a key challenge in the days ahead, as a narrative grows that it is engaging in a smear campaign

Mon, 13 Oct, 2025

Israel Palestinians Gaza Trump
Paul Kearns: The Israel-Hamas war is over — but neither side has won
The biggest winners in the conflict between Israel and Hamas are the arms industry and Donald Trump, writes Paul Kearns in Tel Aviv

Mon, 13 Oct, 2025

Let's stop putting employment barriers in front of people with criminal convictions
Let's stop putting employment barriers in front of people with criminal convictions
Understanding Garda vetting — what it is and what it isn't — is one of the first steps we must take towards rehabilitating those of us who have made mistakes

Mon, 13 Oct, 2025

Catherine Conlon: Joe Wicks's Killer Bar has achieved what no stuffy science report can do
Catherine Conlon: Joe Wicks's Killer Bar has achieved what no stuffy science report can do
Joe Wicks might not be a nutritionist, but he's got consumers thinking about the health impacts of food — why is that a bad thing?

Mon, 13 Oct, 2025

91568
Ernest Shackleton's footsteps: Antarctic hero's cabin is restored and open to visitors
Explorer's cabin had been used as a shed in Norway for most of a century — but now it's been brought back to his Irish birthplace and meticulously restored

Sun, 12 Oct, 2025

Sarah Clancy: Flotillas show that ordinary people must be the antidote to toxic world powers
Sarah Clancy: Flotillas show that ordinary people must be the antidote to toxic world powers
After arrest, imprisonment, and deportation from Israel, Sarah Clancy, an Irish Gaza flotilla participant, reflects on solidarity, conscience, and the power of ordinary people

Sun, 12 Oct, 2025

Irish presidential election
Fianna Fáil’s campaign chaos exposed the cracks long hidden in Micheál Martin’s leadership
Jim Gavin’s abrupt exit from the presidential race has left Fianna Fáil reeling — and Micheál Martin’s leadership looking shakier than ever

Sat, 11 Oct, 2025

Irish presidential election
Theresa Reidy: Three reasons for the brutality of presidential elections
are tests of human endurance and discipline. Uniquely in the Irish electoral landscape, candidates are subjected to the most intense and invasive scrutiny of every aspect of their lives.  There are three reasons for this.

Sat, 11 Oct, 2025

Imasha Costa: 'I am not the reason your system is failing'
Imasha Costa: 'I am not the reason your system is failing'
Ahead of Saturday's anti-migrant protest in Cork City, 'Irish Examiner' journalist Imasha Costa describes life for immigrants in a changed Ireland 

Fri, 10 Oct, 2025

Ray D’Arcy's departure raises question of 'what', not 'who', should replace him
Ray D’Arcy's departure raises question of 'what', not 'who', should replace him
Despite predictions of its demise, radio can still play a role in this period of the world's rapid and radical transformation, writes Roddy Flynn

Fri, 10 Oct, 2025

Sad girl in hooded top, sitting on a window ledge with head in hands in despair
'So, the hell started. I went homeless': Children who arrive here alone need supports
Children who arrive in the State alone need wraparound supports, particularly after they turn 18 when they move straight from the care of Tusla into homelessness, writes Wayne Stanley

Fri, 10 Oct, 2025

Sue Leonard: Jilly Cooper charted the excesses of Thatcher's 1980s
Sue Leonard: Jilly Cooper charted the excesses of Thatcher's 1980s
Although the author's 'bonkbusters' were sneered at by critics, her fun and empathy opened up conversations around sex and influenced a generation, writes Sue Leonard

Fri, 10 Oct, 2025

Irish presidential election
Technically, Jim Gavin could still win this election
It's an unforeseen situation to have a candidate who has withdrawn on the ballot paper — what happens to the votes and the preferences — and can it be challenged?

Fri, 10 Oct, 2025

PALESTINIAN-ISRAEL-GAZA-CONFLICT
Colin Sheridan: The one word missing from all this so-called talk of peace in Gaza is 'Palestinian'
The world may celebrate a ceasefire in Gaza, but without Palestinian agency and justice, peace remains an illusion

Thu, 09 Oct, 2025

The Mick Clifford Podcast: A week and a half — Budget blues and Gavin gone
The Mick Clifford Podcast: A week and a half — Budget blues and Gavin gone
Paul Hosford joins Mick to unpack Jim Gavin’s sudden exit from the presidential race and the fallout from Budget 2026

 Listen | Thu, 09 Oct, 2025

 Listen |

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