I4C Trouble with Daly and Wallace

This week Mick and Clare are in Strasbourg and they’re discussing Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and her speech on the “state of the union”… the absolute state of it is right. We’re talking hypocrisy, fortress Europe and “Great European Values”.

This week the Parliament is getting well and truly back into the swing of things. Mick and Clare catch us up on what has been happening in their committees. They discuss the sixth IPCC report on climate change and how its section on methane emissions is being deliberately misused by the meat and dairy lobby, corruption and organised crime in Bulgaria, working conditions in the aviation sector and...

This week Clare, Mick and Damien discuss the US withdrawal from Afghanistan, the European reaction, the 20 years of US occupation and counterinsurgency during the war in Afghanistan and Irish government complicity in it, and the importance of learning the lessons. They also go back to 2010 to listen to what Julian Assange and WikiLeaks had to say about the war, and discuss how, even though the US...

This summer Belgium was devastated by floods the likes of which it has never seen before, leaving 41 dead. In July, Clare and Mick met Cristophe and François two of the sound engineers in the European Parliament, to discuss what happened. The episode wasn’t published at the time but we’re releasing it now because it’s a powerful conversation about how it feels to see climate change in action, very...

Things are wrapping up for the summer in the European Parliament so we’re leaving you with a big one. Mick and Clare are going deep into foreign policy, their positions on the big issues of the day- Syria, Cuba, Belarus- and the threads that tie it all together. The recent media barrage has misinterpreted Clare and Mick’s critique of the warmongering anti-China, anti-Russia rhetoric as towing the...

This week we've got something different- we're airing an episode of  the Echo Chamber Podcast where Clare and Mick were interviewed by Tony Groves and Martin McMahon. They talk about foreign policy- particularly Syria and Iraq, the EU and recent attacks on the MEP's foreign policy positions in the Irish press. 

This week its I4C Trouble with Wallace and… Thomson. Clare is away and Mick and Damien are using it as an opportunity for an environment triple bill. First up is the EU Climate Law, the not-so-ambitious EU plan for reaching climate neutrality by 2050 which goes to a final vote this week. Mick explains why approving the law as it is amounts to a commitment to climate catastrophe. Then we’re talking...

On this week’s episode Mick, Clare and Damien are talking about a country that’s close to all of their hearts- Italy! They take us through Italian politics, Italy’s impact in the EU and of course… Football. Then there are some updates from Brussels- They're talking about unmanned arial mobility- drones for postal deliveries and air taxis, Europol- the trans-European police force and the beefing up...

This week we’ve got something different for you. Clare and Mick recently appeared on Sina Rahmani’s the East is a Podcast to talk about national sovereignty in the age of global capital. This week we’re broadcasting that interview. Clare, Mick and Sina talk about the Irish parliament’s recent actions on Palestine, Ireland’s strange position as both historical underdog and member of the EU imperial...

This week the EU whistlestop tour is coming home to Ireland. We’ve got an entire episode dedicated to Éire - its role in the EU and how EU membership has shaped it. We talk about defence policy, the eurozone, the groups Irish MEPs belong to in the European Parliament and the Irish people who are making waves in Brussels.

In this week’s episode Clare, Mick and Damien are taking a pitstop in Germany on their inter-rail tour of the EU member states. Mick tells us about his glory days selling light up necklaces on the streets of Munich. They’re also talking us through the recent events in Belarus and the EU’s reaction to them, EU PESCO projects on military mobility and ever closer EU-NATO cooperation, and Afghanistan...

This week on the podcast Clare and Mick are talking about the massacre that is happening in Palestine and Gaza. Opinions voiced on this in the European Parliament last week ranged from the equivocal “two sides” school of thought, to out-and-out messages of support for the apartheid state of Israel. They discuss the falseness of this “two sides” idea and the reluctance of the EU to criticise Israel...

This week on the podcast the Eurotrip continues with a chat about the Netherlands, a small, densely populated country that rivals Ireland in its obsession with dairy and tax breaks for multinationals. Then on to some updates from the week: fishing, transport and foreign policy. Finally we discuss the horrors unfolding in Palestine and Gaza- Israel is killing Palestinian children and there’s no rea...

It was all go in the European Parliament last week: with decisions taken on Brexit, arms funding, space, Russia, Colombia and more…. Clare and Mick are taking us through these latest developments before resuming their EU member state tour in France. Oh la la!  

The EU’s proposed Digital Green Certificate- A travel certificate those who have been tested, vaccinated or recently recovered from Covid-19- has provoked strong reactions in Ireland. Many are worried about the implications of the certificate, while others see it as a potential lifeline for the tourism industry. This week Clare and Mick are diving into the issue and talking us through the Digital...

This week, Clare and Mick posed questions to the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) over whistleblower reports of a cover-up around the chemical weapons investigation in Douma, Syria in 2018.  On the podcast they discuss the Douma whistleblower testimonies and the need for the OPCW to meet with the dissenters. They’re also chatting about French MEP Nathalie Loiseau's react...

Ecuador has just elected right-wing former banker, Guillermo Lasso as president. Clare and Mick were in Ecuador observing the elections. In this episode they report back, giving us the lowdown on the political reality in Ecuador, the electoral process and the outlook for the country going forward.

Repeated US invasions, years of US occupation and the frontline of the fight against ISIS… Iraq is a country that has suffered some of the most severe consequences of foreign interference in the Middle East Clare and Mick spent the past week in Iraq, meeting key decision makers on the ground, listening to them and learning more about the challenges that the country faces. Here’s the real story of...

We’ve got something a little different for you this week. Justin Podur, Associate Professor at York University's Faculty of Environmental and Urban Change, is joining Mick and Clare to discuss the recent agricultural reforms and the farmer’s protests that they have provoked in India. See more of Justin’s work including his Anti Empire Podcast on his website https://podur.org/

This week China has hit back at EU sanctions by sanctioning some members of the European Parliament Committee on Human Rights. Mick and Clare give us the inside story on what is happening there and go in-depth about the EU’s invoking of human rights where and when it suits them. They’re also talking about vaccine passports and EU exports of banned pesticides to third countries, before touching dow...

In our post-paddy’s day episode Mick and Clare are giving us the lowdown on all things Austria. There’s also talk of pastures closer to home and the Irish government’s failure to “green” their agricultural policies as well as the farmers in India taking to the streets in some of the biggest protests in history. Also on the agenda: vaccines (what else?), the trend towards in camera (private) Europe...

This week, the US, EU states and others came together to block a petition by over 80 developing countries to lift patents on vaccines at the World Trade Organisation. Rich countries delivering yet another blow to global health... That’s not all Mick and Clare are sounding off about, they’re also talking about the European Parliament decision to waive the political immunity of three Catalan MEPs, t...

The vaccine rollout is all anyone is talking about at the moment and Mick and Clare are no exception. They give us the inside scoop on what’s happening at EU level and why the UK’s relative success with the rollout is an argument for stronger public healthcare systems. Then back on the EU tour where the next pitstop is… Estonia. Mick and Clare take us on a tour of this little Baltic country and it...

The first stop on Clare and Mick’s virtual whirlwind tour of the EU member states is… The Czech Rep- ahem Czechia… What’s going on in Czech politics? who have they got in the European Parliament? and what on earth is a pirate party? Then on to discussions of China, new EU sanctions on Venezuela, and the carbon “bootprint” of the military sector

With no Damien in the studio this week, Mick and Clare are left to their own devices and Mick takes the opportunity to tell a few stories… They’re also joined by agricultural expert and activist Matteo Netta who gives us the inside scoop on “social farming”, what on earth is it and is there any hope of the EU including it in the Common Agricultural Policy? Last on the agenda is the big news story...