Comment & Analysis - Irish Examiner

Sign in

comment and analysis

Managing retention and exit of personnel is key to resolving Defence Forces staffing issue

Managing retention and exit of personnel is key to resolving Defence Forces staffing issue

Private industry swoops in to hire highly-trained members of the Defence Forces. So the taxpayer is paying for that training while industry captures the return, writes Tony Geraghty

Bank holiday getaway

Who really benefits from lifting the Dublin Airport passenger cap?

School stock

Ciara Reilly: Definition of need has changed to save money on SNAs

Unequal access to remote work is a policy failure

Unequal access to remote work is a policy failure

This is my father and it's the first time we met

This is my father and it's the first time we met

Man in suit confronted by media

Garda Powers Bill has puzzling treatment of journalistic privilege

Surely the minister for justice wants the best protections for the rights of journalists in fulfilling their essential democratic role, writes Cian Ó Concubhair

Tue, 17 Feb, 2026

Giant waves and violent storm jumping over the pier in the seaside town of Tramore, Waterford, Ireland. horizontal format

Rolling back environmental regulation is the ultimate act of self-harm

Across the world, right-wing political forces are working to dismantle decades of environmental and social progress, writes Ciaran Brennan

Tue, 17 Feb, 2026

Change in disability care is possible — it just requires planning

Change in disability care is possible — it just requires planning

Young people with disabilities face a cliff edge when their parents die. It doesn't have to be this way

Mon, 16 Feb, 2026

Leaving Certificate results

Feeder school data is misleading and old-fashioned

Narrow framing of 'success' in education is based on a flawed understanding of how modern schools work — and how children really thrive

Mon, 16 Feb, 2026

Future Cork: Is the city ready to enter the 21st century?

Future Cork: Is the city ready to enter the 21st century?

Five years into our 10-year vision for the city, there has been real progress but the biggest eyesores remain, while city centre green space has been decimated, write Jude Sherry and Frank O'Connor

Mon, 16 Feb, 2026

Italy Politics

Shona Murray: Europe at risk if it does not become a 'genuine federation'

Now that reality of Donald Trumps second administration has set in, Shona Murray asks what should Europe do?

Sat, 14 Feb, 2026

US HERCULES TRANSPORTER

Shannon Airport and ICE deportation flights raise fresh questions over Irish neutrality

ICE deportation stopovers at Shannon Airport reignite debate about neutrality, accountability and Ireland’s complicity in US removals

Sat, 14 Feb, 2026

Wuthering Heights photocall

David O'Mahony: Better to be bloody, bold, and resolute when adapting for the silver screen

The strongest adaptations are ones that show a love and understanding of the source material, even if they don’t manifest it literally

Sat, 14 Feb, 2026

Joanna Donnelly: Focus for forecasters is on how to communicate uncertainty

Joanna Donnelly: Focus for forecasters is on how to communicate uncertainty

Limitations in how far we can predict the weather, and how accurately we can describe the future changed climate, has been limited by chaos at the starting point or description of the boundary conditions

Sat, 14 Feb, 2026

UK-Ireland Summit

Louise Burne: Our 'do nothing Dáil' is much more appealing than Britain's omnishambles

With the British government seemingly in chaos every week, Louise Burne reflects on our sull, but stable, Government in Leinster House

Sat, 14 Feb, 2026

Airbnb Website Ahead Of Earnings Figures

Rory Hearne: U-turn on short-term lets is cynical

The Government's roll back on its restrictions for short-term lets shows the Fianna Fáil/Fine Gael coalition has capitulated to parish pump politics, writes Social Democrats TD Rory Hearne

Fri, 13 Feb, 2026

Garda stock. A generic stock photo of a Garda in Dublin.

New Garda powers bill could conceal abuses

Gardaí can consistently deny racial profiling because there is no data on who is stopped and searched — but the new powers bill doesn't allow this data to be collected. Why, asks Cian Ó Concubhair

Fri, 13 Feb, 2026

Taoiseach visit to the US

Why don't we showcase Ireland properly on St Patrick's Day, by bringing dignitaries here?

The annual export of all our ministers around the world on St Patrick's Day misses the point, argues Simon Tierney

Fri, 13 Feb, 2026

Ireland’s prison system under fire over treatment of inmates with mental illness

Ireland’s prison system under fire over treatment of inmates with mental illness

RTÉ documentary lays bare how prisoners with severe mental illness are failed by the State, with devastating consequences for families

Thu, 12 Feb, 2026

Every abuse story has the same dynamic — power vs vulnerability

Every abuse story has the same dynamic — power vs vulnerability

While we talk about Epstein and the powerful men in his orbit it's easy to forget this abuse is happening all over society, all the time, writes Niamh Ní Dhomhnaill

Thu, 12 Feb, 2026

Mentally ill people in prisons are being failed

Mentally ill people in prisons are being failed

Difficulties facing mentally ill prisoners are not news to those working on the front lines

Thu, 12 Feb, 2026

Hospital

What have we learnt about spinal care at Children’s Health Ireland?

Some 62 child spinal care patients are to be recalled due to queries about their results

Wed, 11 Feb, 2026

Refugees

Why is the Government targeting refugee families?

Since 2022, just 2,530 immediate family members have been allowed to come to Ireland through international protection family reunification

Wed, 11 Feb, 2026

The tricolour's contested origins show how myths are made

The tricolour's contested origins show how myths are made

The first to combine orange, white and green was forgotten patriot Emilia Eleanor Hamilton, who crafted an orange, white and green cockade to be ‘worn near the heart of every Irishman’, writes John Crotty

Wed, 11 Feb, 2026

Seattle Seahawks v New England Patriots - Super Bowl LX - Levi's Stadium

Colin Sheridan: Bad Bunny's show spoke the language of the colonised

Bad Bunny's Super Bowl half-time show was full of cultural codes that many viewers would’ve missed because it was performed in one of the most conservative spaces in American life — the NFL, writes Colin Sheridan

Wed, 11 Feb, 2026

Draft drugs strategy prioritises health over enforcement — but at what cost?

Draft drugs strategy prioritises health over enforcement — but at what cost?

A draft drugs strategy signals a health-led shift, but raises questions about policing, poverty, and community voices

Tue, 10 Feb, 2026

Financial problems

New child maintenance guidelines don't add up

Reform of the child maintenance system is welcome, but the new formula ignores education, childcare, medical and disability related costs and may disadvantage the poorest

Tue, 10 Feb, 2026

Volodymyr Zelensky visit to UK

Morgan McSweeney isn't the first Irish person behind the scenes of British power

The ousted Macroom man follows a long line of Irish people who were indispensable to British Prime Ministers — until they weren't

Tue, 10 Feb, 2026

Boy with smartphone indoors. Preteen boy using a phone checking social media. Concept of children using the smartphone

After 23 years of Safer Internet Days, are children any safer?

Governments say the era of self-regulation is over, but until we tackle the 'launch first, figure out the harm later' thinking, nothing will change, writes Alex Cooney of CyberSafeKids

Tue, 10 Feb, 2026

Students 'denied full college experience' by lack of apartments

Students 'denied full college experience' by lack of apartments

While thousands of apartments have been built in Cork recently, high costs and regulatory uncertainty have slowed delivery of much-needed student accommodation, writes Emer Walsh

Mon, 09 Feb, 2026

Sustainability firm folds due to shift in climate policy

Sustainability firm folds due to shift in climate policy

Change By Degrees co-founder Tara Shine explains how its market all but vanished after the EU's omnibus measure scaled back key sustainability directives

Mon, 09 Feb, 2026

Mark Carney

Karol Balfe: A multilateral world is worth fighting for, it must start with justice for Palestine

Ceasefires that don’t provide safety and a mechanism to rebuild a shattered land are not steps toward peace

Mon, 09 Feb, 2026

Priory Hall Residents Leave

It’s time to tackle Celtic Tiger era building defects once and for all

Will 2026 be the year when owners and tenants living in Celtic Tiger-era buildings with fire safety and structural defects finally get to live in safe homes?

Mon, 09 Feb, 2026

New social media apps formerly twitter x and threads on smart phone screen

Government bodies need to get off X, now

Nobody in Ireland should be exposed to hate speech, bullying, or child sexual abuse images on X just to find out if their train is delayed, writes Clare O'Donoghue Velikic

Mon, 09 Feb, 2026

Norway Royals

Royal scandals expose why monarchy is losing relevance in Britain and beyond

Scandals, shrinking public support and generational change are stripping monarchy of its power, purpose and public patience

Sat, 07 Feb, 2026

European Council meeting

Shona Murray: Keir Starmer’s Brexit dilemma as Brussels signals openness to UK return

As Brexit nears its tenth anniversary, Europe is open to Britain again — but London’s political fear is holding it back

Sat, 07 Feb, 2026

Poor tired depressed hungry homeless man holding a cardboard house. nostalgia and hope concept.

How Ireland became a wealthy country that can’t build the basics

Despite record surpluses, Ireland’s reactive planning culture continues to undermine housing delivery, infrastructure investment and long-term climate resilience

Sat, 07 Feb, 2026

The Mick Clifford Podcast: Politics today — Louise Burne

The Mick Clifford Podcast: Politics today — Louise Burne

Irish Examiner Political Correspondent Louise Burne joins Mick on this week's pod to discuss the Government's response to flooding, George Mitchell's legacy, two upcoming byelections, and more

Listen | Fri, 06 Feb, 2026

We don't need more road safety laws, we need enforcement

We don't need more road safety laws, we need enforcement

Knee jerk responses with zero evidence base such as mandatory hi-vis will not fix our problems, writes Ciarán Cannon

Fri, 06 Feb, 2026

Is a shift towards for-profit care homes a fair deal for all?

Is a shift towards for-profit care homes a fair deal for all?

Nursing home models don't fully address fears about dementia and long-term care. As the population ages, the Government urgently needs to plan, writes Suzanne Cahill

Fri, 06 Feb, 2026

Learning is complex, messy, emotional: AI can’t replicate that

Learning is complex, messy, emotional: AI can’t replicate that

ChatGPT and other AI tools may seem irresistible. But educators should beware, as they could end up trading away the thing that gives them value — the rich experience of slow learning

Thu, 05 Feb, 2026

"Limitless With Chris Hemsworth" New York Premiere

Epstein files: Focus should be on his depravity and apparent immunity

All of these big important men who insist they had no idea — did they not have access to Google? asks Suzanne Harrington

Thu, 05 Feb, 2026

58th UNIFIL Battalion at Dublin Airport 1986

Ireland is buying defence capability, without confronting what that actually requires

Ireland’s defence culture prioritises reassurance over coercion — a model increasingly misaligned with Europe’s deteriorating security environment

Tue, 03 Feb, 2026

Melania Trump Movie

Marina Hyde: From Melania’s black carpet to ICE, Trump’s techlords may be getting buyer’s remorse

The no-shows at the first lady’s movie premiere suggest they may be counting the cost of their chumminess with the president

Tue, 03 Feb, 2026

Gareth O'Callaghan: Claire Byrne's new Newstalk show should have opened with Colm Meaney, not Micheál Martin

Gareth O'Callaghan: Claire Byrne's new Newstalk show should have opened with Colm Meaney, not Micheál Martin

Colm Meaney stole the show as the broadcaster masterfully mixed light and shade on her return 'home' after 15 years at RTÉ

Tue, 03 Feb, 2026

Middle East conflict

Enda Brady: Latest Mandelson revelations put Starmer's judgement in question

Fresh Epstein allegations expose arrogance, judgement failures and the risks Keir Starmer took by resurrecting Labour’s most controversial fixer

Tue, 03 Feb, 2026

calculator with the word rent

Rent reform: Tenants and landlords alike are let down by new residential tenancies bill

Labour's housing spokesman says the the Residential Tenancies (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2026 will spook small landlords into leaving the market, while failing to protect tenants

Tue, 03 Feb, 2026

Ageing parents of children with disabilities 'run ragged full-time caring have to be lobbyists too’

Ageing parents of children with disabilities 'run ragged full-time caring have to be lobbyists too’

With nobody to represent them, people with intellectual disabilities may never leave for-profit emergency placements far from home, writes Cianan Brennan

Tue, 03 Feb, 2026

Oracle CEO Larry Ellison delivers a keyn

Why TikTok’s first week of American ownership was a disaster

App endured a major outage and user backlash over perceived censorship. Now it’s facing an inquiry by the California governor and an ascendant competitor, writes Blake Montgomery

Mon, 02 Feb, 2026

When Israel accepts 70,000 deaths in Gaza, the West’s moral failure is no longer deniable

When Israel accepts 70,000 deaths in Gaza, the West’s moral failure is no longer deniable

As deaths mount and aid is criminalised, Western governments respond with caution, procedure and silence instead of consequence

Mon, 02 Feb, 2026

Pope Leo XIV Holds Epiphany Mass and Jubilee Closing

Will Pope Leo speak truth to power to Donald Trump?

The Vatican's money problems mean Pope Leo’s freedom to act as an independent moral player on the world stage is compromised

Mon, 02 Feb, 2026

Lunchtime News

Newsletter

Keep up with stories of the day with our lunchtime news wrap and important breaking news alerts.

Revoiced

Newsletter

Sign up to the best reads of the week from irishexaminer.com selected just for you.