Hogan heckled, despite being in another country

Environment Minister Phil Hogan was heckled during the budget speeches — even though he was thousands of miles away at the time.

Mr Hogan has been attending a UN climate change conference in Doha, Qatar, since late last week.

When Public Expenditure Minister Brendan Howlin cited Mr Hogan in his speech yesterday — praising his “radical” programme of local government reform — it was met with jeers and laughter from some opposition TDs.