Path to Power

Daniel McConnell and John Lee join Matt to talk about private security as well as Gardaí being used to police O'Connell Street and inner-city Dublin. The difficulty in finalising a pay deal for the public service. RTE: Why Ger Gilroy isn’t the real story but still matters. Jim O'Callaghan's dilemma on free legal aid after a High Court slapdown. Simon Harris and Fine Gael's identity...

Author and satirist Paul Howard, famous for the Ross O'Carroll-Kelly novels, has a new character: Fiach O'Bric, a civil servant charged with the responsibility for a secret government department preparing for a united Ireland. Matt conducted a live, public interview with Paul to mark the publication of 'A Nation Once Again,' and for those of you who couldn’t be there, here is your...

As Fine Gael considers a conference motion that it is “too progressive” and needs to reject woke, its former TD John Deasy and Brenda Power join Matt to debate this. With Fine Gael at 15% in the polls, does the party need a fundamental reset in deciding what it is? They assess whether the Budget was a failure in appealing to what the Fine Gael voters really want, and suggest the special savings ac...

Shane Coleman and Lise Hand discuss Ireland’s failure to tackle climate change, growing opposition to data centres, and our economic dependence on big tech. They examine the global cybersecurity scare that left millions of websites potentially vulnerable to hackers. The heated Dáil row over the Triple Lock and its implications for Irish neutrality. Also, violent protests across Europe and the dang...

Former Taoiseach Leo Varadkar and entrepreneur Áine Kerr join Matt to discuss the reasons for, and the impact of, the public sector pay disputes and how inevitably they will get solved, but when and at what price? After Ireland hosts a major conference on AI, Áine and Leo, who both participated, report on what took place and look to Ireland and the EU’s future with AI. In particular, they focus on...

Daniel McConnell and John Lee join Matt on yet another remarkable week for RTÉ, as Media Minister Patrick O'Donovan withholds €20 million of promised funding from the state broadcaster. What can Kevin Bakhurst do at RTÉ about it? Why the rest of the Cabinet can’t believe that O'Donovan has dropped them in this one and overshadowed the Budget. Daniel, John, and Matt also give their assessme...

Former Taoiseach Leo Varadkar and entrepreneur Áine Kerr join Matt to reflect on a tumultuous week for Irish football, whether the Israel games should have been cancelled, what practical support we can give to Palestine, whether Ireland is antisemitic, and how all of this is viewed in the USA. They turn to the rights and wrongs of the Drumcree/Garvaghy Road parade and what the consequences are for...

John Deasy and Brenda Power join Matt to discuss whether prosperous Ireland is a country for young people. They compare emigration now with the nineties and debate whether young people really have reasons to complain. They broaden the discussion to the general levels of unhappiness expressed by the wider population and ask how prevalent this really is. They look at the budgetary implications of de...

Lise Hand and Shane Coleman join Matt to discuss the fallout of Donald Trump's visit to Ireland and how he unexpectedly emerged as a United Irelander. They discuss his responsibility for the fuel prices and whether the protesters should blame him rather than our government. They discuss Sinn Féin’s tactics in achieving a United Ireland and why Micheál Martin thinks it’s all ráiméis. In light of Ga...

Daniel McConnell and John Lee join Matt to look ahead to the budget and discuss the options and how they will be influenced by the economic upheaval caused by Trump's Iran war. They talk about carbon tax, excise duties on fuel, stamp duty for first-time house buyers, and Harris’ special investment accounts. The politics of the GAA integration row: what was Iar-Uachtarán Mary McAleese playing at, a...

Matt is joined by former Taoiseach Leo Varadkar and Áine Kerr to discuss carbon taxes, whether they should go up in the budget and whether they should be there at all. They assess the public transport fare hikes and ask will the new buses ever leave the garage? They turn to pay for public-sector workers and wonder how we have reached a situation where there might be strikes. They examine the bad b...

British Prime Minister Andy Burnham rules out a United Ireland referendum; John Deasy and Lise Hand join Matt to discuss the Sinn Féin reaction, how happy Taoiseach Micheál Martin is likely to be at the development - given that he recently described the idea of a border poll as driving him bananas - and how much interest there genuinely is amongst Southern Irish voters in the prospects of a refere...

Daniel McConnell and John Lee join Matt to discuss the political response to the outrageous and horrific crash on the M9. They focus on Jim O'Callaghan’s pronouncements and the likely implementation of new laws and Garda measures. The Healy-Rae documentary and what it revealed about the extent of the split in the Kerry dynasty. Autumn's political dilemma: how does the government deal with reducing...

John Deasy joins Matt to offer a person-by-person assessment of the performance of each member of the Cabinet. Who’s good and who’s not so good, even bad? Brought to you by The Greenman Group. PTP+ To enjoy early access, ad-free listening and weekly bonus episodes, sign up at pathtopowerpodcast.com Get in touch: mail@pathtopowerpodcast.com Follow Matt: https://twitter.com/cooper_m https://www.link...

Former Taoiseach Leo Varadkar and Sinn Féin’s Senator Conor Murphy, a former NI economy minister, join Matt for a full discussion about the possibilities of a united Ireland. Is it the inevitability that some people are starting to suggest, who actually wants it, and would a citizens’ assembly be helpful for preparations in the Republic? The potential economic benefits and challenges assessed. Do...

In hiding a cost-benefit analysis for the Ryder Cup in Limerick next year, is the Government in danger of drawing more attention to the costs of subsidising the event? Lise Hand and Shane Coleman join Matt to discuss this and recall other occasions when ministers spent public money on major sporting events. Matt reveals that planning for Donald Trump’s September visit has accelerated, making it al...

Simon Harris' income tax promises: John Deasy and Brenda Power join Matt to debate the political benefits to the Fine Gael leader of making promises he may find hard to deliver. They also address the controversial issue of inheritance tax. The politics of Jim O'Callaghan's row with the legal profession are judged. The new plans for e-scooters and whether they should be extended to cyclists. And th...

Lise Hand and John Lee join Matt to discuss Mary Lou McDonald and Micheál Martin's true feelings for each other after the Sinn Féin leader calls her Fianna Fáil counterpart and Taoiseach a 'tosser'. Lynn Boylan's European Parliament embarrassment on the Irish language. Sinn Féin's position on an engineering plant in Derry that might be supplying the Israeli Air Force. The politics of Intel's incre...

Former Taoiseach Leo Varadkar and Áine Kerr join Matt to address the challenge to Nigel Farage being posed by a comedy candidate in the Clacton by-election. They give suggestions on how to revitalise O'Connell Street and the GPO. They offer a cost-benefit analysis on the MetroLink and wonder why it has taken so long. All three are outraged by the decision of the US Ambassador to Ireland to visit C...

Matt is joined by Danny McConnell and John Lee, who distinguish between Jeffrey Donaldson's illegal acts and his inappropriate ones, but ask how often inappropriate acts by Irish politicians get overlooked by the media. They examine some of the most high-profile events of the 21st century that did get media attention and why others didn't. Micheál Martin's erosion of authority, security issues wit...

Former Taoiseach Leo Varadkar and Áine Kerr join Matt to discuss Jeffrey Donaldson's appalling crimes and what he put his victims through by denying his guilt. They look at his political career and how he was a malign influence for more than forty years. They discuss Nigel Farage and whether his acceptance of a £5 million gift has scuttled his chance of becoming a prime minister. They discuss the...

Lise Hand joins Matt to remember their great friend who was murdered 30 years ago in June 1996. They recall their friendships with Veronica, how they got to know her, and her early years in journalism. They swap stories about what a great character she was, but also how she was a trailblazing journalist. They turn to the circumstances of the horror of her death and assess the reaction of the polit...

Lise Hand and Shane Coleman join Matt to discuss the race riots in Belfast and how racism is also a major issue throughout the island, how fire bombings have not been restricted to Belfast, and how a blind eye is turned to the island's native criminals. The political posturing over the EU Migration Pact and its implementation. The politics of the Ireland-Israel soccer international. Further develo...

Brenda Power and John Deasy join Matt to discuss the controversy about hospital consultants employed by the State doing private work in public hospitals. Two bulls in a Kerry Field: division between the Healy-Raes, what's really going on? The new EU scrappage scheme: more than a PR stunt? The politics of the declining birth rate. Bungalow blitz or bliss? John and Brenda have very different views....

Danny McConnell and John Lee join Matt to discuss the concession that our 2030 climate targets will be missed, and ask if we need to apply the Tony Blair analysis for Britain that net zero is inappropriate. They offer their by-election analysis of the real significance of the outcomes of two by-elections for the national picture. They discuss the changing conversation on immigration and Jim O’Call...