Meet the Media: Meet the Media: Marc Coleman
Monday, October 29th, 2012Presenter of Newstalk’s Coleman at Large, economist and Sunday Independent columnist Marc Coleman talks to eolas about radically reducing government and why preparing his show is like cooking a meal. What education and career path led to your current positions? I came to broadcasting having spent two exciting years as economics editor of The Irish Times. This followed a scholarship MBA in the Smurfit Business School after seven years at the European Central Bank. Before that I was an economist in the Department of Finance and before that I worked in Carr Communications with Terry Prone. My...[full story]
Political Platform: Political Platform: Noel Grealish TD
Monday, October 29th, 2012First elected a TD in 2002, Noel Grealish was a Progressive Democrat until the party disbanded in 2009, but now serves Galway West as an independent. He tells eolas about the party’s time in power and shares his views on why people have lost confidence in the political system. How and why did you become involved in politics? I got involved through my dad who was a staunch Fianna Fáiler, who dragged me screaming to my first Fianna Fáil meeting at 15 years of age. He was President of the local cumann, and from that I got involved. I developed a very good friendship with Bobby Molloy....[full story]
Public affairs, Trades Union Desk: Trades Union Desk: Concede or repent
Monday, October 29th, 2012ICTU’s Macdara Doyle believes that IMF admissions of miscalculation give further grounds for dropping austerity. Last month, Congress General Secretary David Begg said that he expected that henceforth members of the troika should don sackcloth and ashes, when visiting Ireland. Mr Begg said that such a public display of contrition was necessary to atone for the serious damage that troika policies have inflicted on the Irish economy and society as a whole. The public wearing of sackcloth dusted with ash is an old Hebrew tradition that signified contrition or remorse on the part...[full story]
Public affairs, Trades Union Desk: Trades union desk: Tackling the ‘assault on social Europe’
Friday, August 31st, 2012ICTU’s Macdara Doyle welcomes the campaign for a European social compact to restore the social rights ignored in the rush to appease the markets. If the euro zone continues on its current trajectory, then some form of break up or dissolution seems inevitable. That of course would have profound implications for the European Union itself. To date, all efforts and energy have focussed on protecting a criminally reckless financial system from the consequences of its own appalling behaviour. Ireland is but an example writ large, where heaven and earth have been moved and the fundamentals...[full story]
Politics, Public affairs: Keeping an eye on the House
Friday, August 31st, 2012Government Chief Whip Paul Kehoe discusses the need for ‘communications discipline’ in government and plans for more political reform with Stephen Dineen. He’s the man behind the Taoiseach, in a sense. You’ll see Paul Kehoe sitting behind Enda Kenny at leaders’ questions or order of business, information on legislation to hand. One of his main duties is to brief the boss. As the Minister of State charged with scheduling Dáil business and government discipline, he’s got a good overview of how everything is going. When asked what government achievement he’s most proud of,...[full story]
Public affairs: A citizen voice
Friday, August 31st, 2012Few citizens would dedicate the majority of their time to the maintenance of websites that keep their elected representatives in check. Meadhbh Monahan speaks to John Handelaar, creator of KildareStreet.com and FixMyStreet.ie, who does it for free. Living with his wife in Cork, John Handelaar, who describes himself as a “[web] developer, troublemaker and broadcaster,” set up KildareStreet.com in April 2009. The impetus behind his decision was that the Oireachtas website at that time was, in his view, ineligible and cumbersome. “It just needed done,” he tells eolas. He was helped...[full story]
Politics, Public affairs: Sinn Féin in the Seanad
Friday, August 31st, 2012Sinn Féin will take a seat in any chamber on the island in order to transmit the republican message, Senator David Cullinane tells Meadhbh Monahan. He discusses Seanad reform and his ambitions to become a TD. Political reform is high on Senator David Cullinane’s agenda. Sinn Féin’s leader in the Seanad was nominated to the labour panel following the 2011 general election and is joined by Kathryn Reilly on the industrial and commercial panel and Trevor Ó Clochartaigh on the agricultural panel. Pearse Doherty was the party’s only representative in the last Seanad. Contrary to popular...[full story]
Justice, Public affairs: Stanton to attention
Friday, August 31st, 2012Chairman of the Justice, Equality and Defence Committee David Stanton discusses the new scrutiny process for bills and the need for more committee time, with Stephen Dineen. For David Stanton, “legislators now are working as legislators,” and it pleases him. This has arisen from Oireachtas committees being given the chance to scrutinise legislation before it is published. “Prior to this, bills were published and it was a fait accompli,” the Fine Gael man tells eolas. Committees now have an opportunity “to get the legislation very right before it’s published”. Under the new...[full story]
Meet the Media, Public affairs: Meet the Media: Juno McEnroe, Political reporter, Irish Examiner
Friday, August 31st, 2012The Irish Examiner’s political reporter Juno McEnroe tells eolas about his journey from ‘dressing gown’ journalism, to Afghanistan and then to Leinster House. What education and career path led to your current position in the Irish Examiner? In a strange way, I became involved in journalism almost by accident. Having done English and Italian in UCD, I found myself working in the IFSC during the initial boom times in 2000. It was suggested that I apply for the editorship of UCD’s bi-weekly, the University Observer newspaper, and I became a co-editor there. There were long...[full story]
Political Platform, Public affairs: Political Platform: Dara Calleary TD
Friday, August 31st, 2012Following in his father’s footsteps, Dara Calleary was first elected as TD for Mayo in the 2007 general election. He served as Minister of State for Labour Affairs and Public Service Transformation (2009 to 2011). Here, he discusses Fianna Fáil’s prospects for a comeback and his preferred budget choices. How and why did you become involved in politics? As my father Seán was a Fianna Fáil TD for the Mayo East constituency, I always had a strong interest in current affairs and politics, right back to when I was in my final years of national school. Our house was always one where...[full story]
