HADN’T anticipated taking much comfort from this tepid shower of a presidential campaign but that’s what has happened. Peter Casey is the man responsible for it, writes Alison O’Connor. 

Alison O’Connor argues that Simon Coveney, through his words, is pointing the blame for homelessness not towards him or his Cabinet colleagues but to ‘the State’ — to all of us.

Journalists should remember that it’s part of the job to treat everyone equally in this campaign, writes Alison O’Connor

Dr Scally has produced a report that sets a standard. It is most unIrish in that it does not obfuscate, writes Alison O’Connor

Who is in charge of the Catholic Church? asks Alison O’Connor. 

As things stand, the bishop remains correct in the letter of the law, if not the spirit that currently appears to prevail with this Pope, writes Alison O’Connor

YOU know when you put something away carefully and you did such a good job of it that you can’t find it? Well that happened to me this week. It drove me nut, writes Alison O’Connor.

The best way to help our girls and boys is to develop their sexuality in a healthy manner, writes Alison O’Connor. 

Alison O’Connor believes he showed belated wisdom in not going to the country back in December. But all he needs at the moment is a valid, or valid enough, reason to throw us all into a general election campaign.

Abortion is not as black and white as people might portray it, and ‘there is a lot of grey’ in this profound, complex moral issue, writes Alison O’Connor.

This was a debate about women’s rights and healthcare and about giving women equal opportunity, writes Alison O’Connor

There was no getting over the oddness... of her being elected unopposed, writes Alison O’Connor

Sean Gallagher waited a long time for his case to conclude, with his life, no doubt, in some ways on hold, writes Alison O’Connor.

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

The death of Savita Halappanavar five years ago has not yet lead to a transformation of the law on abortion but change will surely happen before much longer, writes Alison O’Connor

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.

Imagine either of the two parties finding themselves with abortion as an election issue, 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

After  a summer of wetsuit posing, efforts to expand his appeal through social media and going unrecognised by Irish students on their J1 visa Taoiseach Leo Varadkar now gets down to the real business of running the country, writes Alison O’Connor.

If you are a parent of one of the 30,000 girls who will be offered the vaccine in September, you are right to inform yourself, but do so from trusted scientific sources, writes Alison O’Connor.

A row has been simmering between the executive and judicial branches of government for some time, writes Alison O’Connor. 

As Judge Mary Laffoy gets ready to present her report on the Citizens’ Assembly, Alison O’Connor says we are in for a tortuous few months before we get to vote on the issue.

You cannot purport to be a modern leader, like Macron, and not prioritise women at cabinet, writes Alison O’Connor

Regardless of who wins the election today, the real winner in all of this has been the

I am afraid to go the French capital, and certainly do not want to bring them [my children] there, writes Alison O’Connor.

Taking questions for some 40 minutes at his policy launch yesterday, Leo Varadkar looks cut from a different cloth to the incumbent leader, writes Alison O’Connor.

Without doubt he damaged the party further by staying on too long in an act of self indulgence, writes Alison O’Connor

They believe it is no wonder Muslim women are synonymous with words such as submissive, passive, oppressed, victim, writes Alison O’Connor

The problem is we all know the Church plays a very long game, and sticks, religiously, to its beliefs, writes Alison O’Connor

The Oireachtas no longer has the excuse of saying it does not know the way forward on abortion after the Citizens’ Assembly delivered its judgments, writes Alison O’Connor.

You are cleaning your teeth with plastic. You can literally feel it on your tongue, writes Alison O’Connor.

The leadership contest has effectively been going on for over a year, points out Alison O’Connor.

Our streets host fabulous parades by day, but scenes of vomiting, urinating, and fighting by night, writes Alison O’Connor.

As a woman listening, it was so wounding to realise what little value your country has in you, writes Alison O’Connor.

They’ve been chosen to give a ‘range’ of the experiences which can be undergone by women, rather than an absolute balance of pro and anti abortion, writes Alison O’Connor.

A result where holy Catholic Ireland has elected a gay prime minister would make international news, writes Alison O’Connor.

Helping patients come to terms with their situation is just one of many care services provided by the staff of Our Lady’s Hospice, writes Alison O’Connor.

Enda Kenny’s approach has been to treat the whistleblower as if he had the equivalent of a political plague, writes Alison O’Connor.

Asked if she may have to stand down Regina Doherty said: ‘The principle is more important than the job’, writes Alison O’Connor

Why do we take to the streets in massive numbers to protest over water charges and not over such utterly appalling conditions in our health services? asks Alison O’Connor

Poorer women accept the pregnancy because they can’t raise €1,000 to fund a termination abroad, writes Alison O’Connor

Our creaking health system is overwhelmed by our unhealthy relationship with alcohol, writes Alison O’Connor.

Being a feminist right now feels foolish and pointless. It is not what we would want for our daughters, writes Alison O’Connor

In the space of a short few months we have had the double blow of Trump and Brexit, writes Alison O’Connor

I don’t think there’s a single article that has ever been written about a male politician in the same vein, writes Alison O’Connor.