Cornered Bertie forced to give a straight answer

IT IS rare that political discourse in the Dáil gets truly down and dirty. A kick in the policy department is the stuff of everyday politics but a well-placed knee below the belt is a surprisingly rare phenomenon.

Yesterday, though, Enda Kenny dispensed with all the routine niceties to land a nutcracker of a blow right where it hurts.

Being a connoisseur of waffle and linguistic dexterity is no good whatsoever if you don’t understand the language, and as all TDs know, the Taoiseach is just a tad shy when it comes to the cupla focail.