Surely the time has come to acknowledge what a substantial figure Enda Kenny is, and what a mark he has made on the Irish political landscape, says Fergus Finlay. He established a place in history last week as the first Fine Gael leader ever to have been re-elected to the office of Taoiseach.

Labour has been a party of democratic values, where debate and dissent has been valued, writes Fergus Finlay  

THIS month we made a big step towards abolishing the idea that children need care over the age of seven. On July 3 we did away with the notion that children over 16 need care if they were receiving a One Parent Family payment before April 27, 2011.

In the 1980s when Labour was having another of its bruising internal upheavals, then leader Frank Cluskey noticed Michael D Higgins was absent. On hearing the TD had gone on an emergency mission to Nicaragua, Cluskey is reported to have said Higgins was taking the easy option of "saving the world over saving the Labour party".

The newly elected Government led by Garret FitzGerald insisted the B&I Ferries could only close its Cork-Pembroke service in early 1983 if it agreed to maintain a summer service, against the advice of an interdepartmental group.

There were disagreements between ministers over the size of a proposed increase in electricity prices in May 1983.

DEAR Eamon, I’ve been half-wondering when it would happen.

BUTCHERS or gardeners — which are they?

THE year 1977 was not a great one from the standpoint of the state papers. Historically, the most important events were related to that year’s general election. As the civil servants were not formally involved, the elections were glossed over in the state papers.

THERE was a palpable air of disappointment among the media commentators I spoke and listened to over the weekend. Labour wasn’t going to beat itself up over a leadership election.

THOSE of us who were fans of the hit US political drama The West Wing are suffering withdrawal symptoms.

Former Labour leader Michael O’Leary, who has died in France, became alienated from politics, writes Paul O’Brien.

Warm tributes were paid today to former Tánaiste and Labour Party leader Michael O’Leary, who died after a long political and legal career.

Former Tánaiste and Labour Party leader Michael O'Leary has died in France.

THE controversy about whether Seán Haughey was shafted or just plain peed off has been an entirely spurious one.

WHAT have MRBI and Thomond Park got in common? One is a highly respected opinion poll company, the other a cathedral of rugby (actually, maybe the Vatican of rugby).

EILEEN DESMOND was one of the greats.

THE most depressing thing the annual UN human development report tells us is not that, yet again, Ireland is the second richest country in the EU and that it still has the highest poverty rate. We know this from other studies.