No excuse for slapping a child will be accepted by the courts henceforth. The law has been changed to clarify a grey area that persisted for 155 years around physical punishment by parents and minders.

The exclusion of children from the Gender Recognition Bill 2014 has been described by Independent Senator Jillian van Turnhout as fundamentally wrong.

Fianna Fáil Senator Mark Daly has been compared to 'Dallas' character Bobby Ewing after recalling the Seanad from summer recess today.

Three of the Taoiseach's nominees to the Seanad have today criticised the Government's decision to repay unguaranteed bondholders at the former Anglo Irish Bank.

IT may not be surprising but it is disappointing that Senator Jillian van Turnhout was subjected to unacceptable personal abuse because she decided that she would not help Senator David Norris secure a nomination to contest the presidential election.