It took an extraordinarily long time, in political terms, for Frances Fitzgerald to finally announce that she would resign, suggests Alison O’Connor.

‘Learn about myself’, ‘learn from my actions’, ‘conquer my demons’, ‘a wake up call’, ‘pursuing shared feelings’, ‘was mistaken’, ‘fallen below the high standards’, ‘difficult conversations’, ‘face your missteps’, ‘been made aware’, ‘crossed the line’, ‘how benign my intent’, ‘caused upset’, ‘see things differently now’, ‘up until now’, ‘ebullient behaviour’, ‘examining my own behaviour’, ‘no time intended to upset anyone’.

Government has zero legitimacy in criticising the commentary around housing, until real improvement can be shown, writes Alison O’Connor

Alison O’Connor worries about the women who work in the background of Leinster House.

THERE are more than 1,000 abortions taking place in Ireland each year. Yes, they are happening every day, right under our noses, and as time goes on that figure is going to rise substantially, writes Alison O’Connor.

Surely there was someone somewhere, a man even, willing to point out to the Taoiseach that he’s big time storing up trouble with Irish women the way that he’s going on.

Imagine either of the two parties finding themselves with abortion as an election issue, writes Alison O’Connor

We shouldn’t rule out the prospect of Fianna Fáil returning to power just as the economy really picks up, writes Alison O’Connor.

The committee will likely end up recommending abortion in restrictive circumstances, writes Alison O’Connor

Reading between the lines President Higgins is actively considering running again, writes Alison O’Connor