Fifty-odd years ago two lifelines were thrown to rural Ireland by a Fianna Fáil majority government. In July 1961, Ireland applied for membership of the EEC. Just five years later, in September 1966, the minister for education announced his free education scheme. We then joined the EEC in 1973.

Brexit has put massive strain on Irish-UK relations but could a tiny islet be the rock on which they perish? Caroline O'Doherty looks at the background to the Rockall dispute.

John Daly recalls the impact on a corner of Co Kerry fifty years ago when Hollywood arrived in the shape of ‘Ryan’s Daughter’

Our capacity to absorb, to move on, to learn from trauma is a survival mechanism to try to live contented lives.

Macron’s economic remodelling of Europe is... partly a threat to our national interest

The theft of a historic sculpture from St Patrick’s Street has reignited a long-running conversation in Cork City about the handling of historic artefacts.

Kerry GAA is today mourning the loss of three-time All-Ireland winner Jerome O’Shea, who passed away at the age of 87 yesterday.

Societies’ and individuals’ memories are shaped by a combination of emotions and experiences. Character and perception are influential too. Love, especially deep love between individuals, may be the most powerful, the most enduring of those factors.

Britain misses the point in approach to Brexit talks, writes Martin Mansergh

In its search for a new post-Brexit friendly EU neighbour, Ireland could do worse than look to the Netherlands, with both having much in common in a changing EU, writes Kyran Fitzgerald

As employment in Ireland returns to levels last seen a decade ago, many businesses are discovering that an economic recovery has a downside.

Known as ‘God’s Banker’ and the ‘Father of Globalisation’, Peter Sutherland’s legacy is considerable yet, to some, controversial.

The multi-millionaire businessman, Larry Goodman, attempted to squeeze further concessions out of the Charles Haughey-led government in 1987, despite having already secured one of the largest ever state grants for a private company.

Ulster says no. That was Monday’s story.

In embracing Brexit, the DUP has placed itself and the union in hock to London, to an unprecedented extent, writes Gerard Howlin

As we know, our nearest neighbour and one of our largest trading partners decided at a referendum last June to exit the EU.

The centenary of the birth of Jack Lynch is clearly an event worth marking, not least because he embodied the centrist consensual approach to politics and economic management which on the whole has served the country pretty well.

“We Come On The Ship They Call The Mayflower

AT the opening of parliament in London yesterday, Britain’s Queen Elizabeth set out her government’s legislative plans which focus largely on Brexit. 

Apart from parenthood, there are few nobler expressions of human optimism or ambition than a commitment to education.

Fancy a pint? Sounds good, doesn’t it?

Justin Keating was Minister for Industry and Commerce in the early 1970s and a man of strong convictions, never afraid to voice his opinions. Ryle Dwyer reads between the lines of his collection of writings. 

NOW that British Prime Minister May has triggered Article 50, many voters in Northern Ireland and Scotland find themselves peering through Alice’s Looking Glass at a transformed world they did not ask to visit.

After 67 years as an anchor employer at the Marina, a perfect storm of mounting losses, a hard recession, and the ending of tariffs on car assembly, meant the Irish plant had to close in 1984.

The 1970's were a time of highs and lows for workers at the Marina. As models like the Capri and Escort kept Ford as a brand leader, the global economy and industrial strife had adverse effects.

The Marina plant in Cork marked its 50th anniversary in 1967 with a £2million revamp — and it was a golden era for motorists, as the iconic Cortina, Escort and Capri hit the ground running.

There was an air of optimism when Ireland took her place in the EEC on January 1, 1973, writes Miriam Nyhan Grey.

A minister who calls the Council of Europe a “waste of fucking space” suggests Irish people as well as the Dáil will be forced into debating and considering whether Ireland should leave the EU once Britain exits the union.

Proposals by the energy minister, Dick Spring, to compel the ESB to buy gas from the Kinsale gasfield at uncommercial rates were described as “hopelessly illogical” by the country’s most senior civil servant.

The British and Irish governments ruled out co-operation on testing emissions from the nuclear plant at Sellafield in 1986 in the wake of the major nuclear accident at Chernobyl.

Minister for public service, Ruairí Quinn, objected 30 years ago to proposals for Ireland to sign a European Convention which would allow for the transfer of Irish prisoners held abroad back home because of the existing overcrowding problem in Irish prisons.

When the people of the United Kingdom voted to leave the EU, on June 23, it provoked a tsunami of self-centred comment on this side of the water. Would it be economically disastrous for Ireland or would it bring huge opportunities for our financial services market?

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The European Union's lead Brexit official has urged the UK to "keep calm and negotiate" as he set out an 18-month deadline for talks on a deal.

Air travel, electronic goods, online services, and car rentals were the most common issues consumers complained about last year.

IT IS almost exactly 50 years since Donogh O’Malley caused consternation among colleagues in government when he announced his free post-primary education scheme without having brought the matter to Cabinet.

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