Inside Politics with Hugh Linehan

The Electoral Commission is a newly established state body set up to oversee elections in Ireland. Taking on a range of existing electoral functions, it will also be responsible for deciding on the number of TDs in the Dáil and the boundaries and size of each constituency and local election area. The first report from the Commission on constituency boundaries is due out at the end of August. So wh...

Jack Horgan-Jones and Pat Leahy join Hugh to talk about the week in politics, including: Government reaction to the agonising migrant accommodation shortage crisis . Will voters react too when they get a chance? Matt Barrett's apology for making jokes about King Charles III's coronation while there as the Taoiseach's +1 At the time of recording, local elections in Northern Ireland are looking good...

The ongoing crisis over a shortage of accommodation for International Protection applicants is an acute problem that risks becoming a chronic one for the State. After a week of violent clashes, arson and blockades taking place at accommodation sites, the podcast panel looks again at what's been happening, how bad the problem is and how the political system is reacting. Would you like to recei...

Jack Horgan-Jones and Pat Leahy join Hugh to discuss the big political stories of the week. Would you like to receive daily insights into world events delivered to your inbox? Sign up for Denis Staunton's Global Briefing newsletter here: irishtimes.com/newsletters/global-briefing/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Political columnist and podcaster Rafael Behr returns to the podcast to talk about his new book Politics: A Survivor's Guide. One theme of Behr’s book is denial about how toxic and dysfunctional politics has become, which he compares to his own failure to notice how his own health declined while covering the most divisive and frustrating years of Brexit. “I'm sure these obstructions will clear the...

After yet another ECB rates rise, could we see the reintroduction of mortgage interest relief to take some pressure off homeowners? That was the first point of discussion on the Inside Politics podcast round-up this week. The panel also gave their view on President Higgins’ recent speech at a reception for think tank Tasc, in which he condemned the "obsession” with achieving economic growth at the...

Fiona Hill returns to the podcast to talk to Hugh Linehan about how global attitudes to the war in Ukraine have shifted in the year since Russia’s invasion, the roots of widespread global apathy towards the Ukrainian cause and whether the conflict has become in some sense a ‘proxy war’ between the West and the rest, as well as a fight for Ukrainian independence and sovereignty. They also discuss h...

Tánaiste Micheál Martin's rant in the Dáil was the first point of discussion on the podcast's round-up this week. The rant was aimed at the brand of investigative journalism being carried out by The Ditch, journalism that Jennifer Bray and Pat Leahy agree, 'stands on its own'.    And while the Tánaiste's outburst was uncharacteristic, Pat felt it 'shouldn't distract from the questio...

Minister for Transport and Green Party leader Eamon Ryan talks to Hugh Linehan and Harry McGee about policies and politics. Would you like to receive daily insights into world events delivered to your inbox? Sign up for Denis Staunton's Global Briefing newsletter here: irishtimes.com/newsletters/global-briefing/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Cormac McQuinn and Pat Leahy join Hugh Linehan to discuss the week in politics: How should the Government use this year's forecast €10 billion budget surplus ? TDs are obsessed with what the new Electoral Commission will do to constituency boundaries . History shows they have good reason. Secretary general at the Department of Health Robert Watt's appearance at the Oireachtas finance committee did...

On today’s Inside Politics podcast Hugh Linehan is joined by Harry McGee and Jack Horgan-Jones from our political team to discuss this week’s stories, including: Focus on Sinn Féin’s link to discredited witness Jonathan Dowdall since the conclusion of the Regency trial this week. Will the connection harm the party at election time? Fine Gael TD John Paul Phelan’s intention to stand down at the nex...

Irish Times Washington Correspondents past and present, Simon Carswell and Martin Wall, have both been covering US president Joe Biden's visit to Ireland this week. They join Pat Leahy to talk about what the visit has been like and how it has gone down at home in the US, here in Ireland and elsewhere. They look at Mr Biden's comments here and ask how well he's balanced the various diplomatic, poli...

Gerard Howlin and Freya McClements join Pat Leahy to talk about all the politics surrounding US President Joe Biden's visit to Ireland. The four-day tour gets going in earnest today with an address at Ulster University in Belfast. Would you like to receive daily insights into world events delivered to your inbox? Sign up for Denis Staunton's Global Briefing newsletter here: irishtimes.com/newslett...

The whole world is a series of collective action problems, says Professor Ben Ansell. We want action taken to solve problems, but we want most of the benefits of those actions for ourselves while wanting others to bear the costs. These conflicts are at the heart of the failure of politics to solve many pressing problems, from housing to climate change. In his new book Why Politics Fails: The Five...

Cormac McQuinn and Pat Leahy join Hugh to look back at the week in politics: Bad-tempered Dáil debates on confidence motions this week Defence Forces in crisis following the Women of Honour report US president Joe Biden's Ireland visit schedule confirmed And the team talk about some of the best Irish Times content of the week, including: Mark Paul on the outcome of the SNP leadership race and the...

April marks 25 years since the Belfast or Good Friday Agreement was reached, ending the Troubles and establishing a new political arrangement on the island of Ireland. But today the institutions that were set up back in 1998 are in crisis. Irish Times columnist Fintan O'Toole talks to Hugh Linehan about the significance of the Agreement: The events that led up to the deal and the role of John Hume...

Despite the government's comfortable defeat of a motion of no confidence this week, the fallout continues as it reacts to the forthcoming lifting of the eviction ban. "They've made a hames of it," according to Pat Leahy. Jack Horgan Jones analyses how Green support is slipping among young voters and the number of WhatsApp leaks is indicative of a very unhappy party. Plus, the attitude to the Winds...

The contest to replace Nicola Sturgeon has been heating up over the last number of weeks, as the three candidates vying for the position, have clashed over policy issues and the future of the party. The first leadership contest in 20 years; it’s generally believed to be a two-horse race between current Health Secretary Humza Yousaf and Finance Secretary Kate Forbes, with former Minister for C...

It's St Patrick's Day week and ministers are flying off to press the flesh around the world. Jack Horgan-Jones and Jennifer Bray join Hugh to talk about everything that's going on back home in politics including: Joe Biden will visit Ireland next month. How will he be received North and South? Tanaiste Micheal Martin says Ireland has 'turned a corner' on housing. Is he right? An errant tweet has l...

One issue has dominated the agenda on what was an already busy week for politics. The decision to lift the eviction ban was a shock reversal of what was expected from Tuesday's cabinet meeting, according to Jack Horgan-Jones. The maelstrom of personal stories from worried renters gives the opposition an easily-understood attack line from now until the next election. Coalition tensions are also mou...

People Before Profit TD for Dún Laoghaire Richard Boyd Barrett talks to Hugh and Jen about a pamphlet recently published by his party that set out its unashamedly radical politics and questioned how far the electorate could trust Sinn Fein to implement left-wing policies if in government. They also discuss Richard's views on the need to nationalise industries, how to tackle the housing crisis...

Jennifer Bray and Pat Leahy join Hugh to talk about the week in politics: Minister of state Niall Collins fails to put questions over a planning application to bed People Before Profit publish a remarkable document Where new Soc Dems leader Holly Cairns can find votes for her party Plus the panel talk about their favourite Irish Times pieces of the week: Matt Hancock's leaked Whatsapp messages Har...

The Government and the European Union expect British prime minister Rishi Sunak to proceed with the new deal on the Northern Ireland protocol even if the DUP ultimately rejects it, according to sources in Dublin and Brussels. But where would that leave politics in Northern Ireland?  To talk about the deal and how it is going down in Dublin, London and Belfast, Hugh talks to Pat Leahy, Mark Pa...

Holly Cairns is seen as the most likely contender to succeed Roisin Shorthall and Catherine Murphy, who announced they’re to step down as co-leaders of the Social Democrats this week. Harry McGee observes the party’s younger generation of TDs and councillors may better reflect the profile of the party’s membership. The first Irish Times poll of 2023 is reassuring for Fine Gael and Sinn Fein while...

How the war in Ukraine is seen in Europe and around the world is complex and always changing, but there's no doubt that global perceptions. and motivations will play a role in how the conflict plays out and ultimately comes to an end. To discuss the global aspect of the war, Hugh is joined by China correspondent Denis Staunton, Brussels correspondent Naomi O'Leary and Berlin correspondent Derek Sc...