Sunday Independent – You can whip TDs into line, but beware of a public backlash when they realise what it means

My opinion piece in The Sunday Independent on 31st March, 2024.

The Sunday Independent – The State’s abject failure to enforce immigration rules is causing chaos

My opinion piece in The Sunday Independent on 31st January 2024.

The Sunday Independent – The debate on Irish neutrality is to be on the Government’s terms and on nobody else’s

An editorial I wrote for yesterday’s Sunday Independent.

The Sunday Independent: More chaos than cunning – Coalition plans for offshore energy have a real Blackadder whiff about them

This week, as the Dáil voted to buy carbon credits from Slovakia, the Government has yet to produce a plan outlining how it will meet its target of 5GW offshore energy generation by 2030.

My opinion piece in this week’s Sunday Independent.

The Sunday Independent – Subsidies are just a finger in the dyke — Ireland needs energy sovereignty

How we are going to meet our energy needs? And how long we can continue to provide financial compensation for our high energy costs over which we have no control due to our reliance on imports? I wrote about the issue in today’s Sunday Independent.

The Sunday Independent – Carbon budget is specifically designed to circumvent the democratic process

In today’s Sunday Independent, I wrote about why a Dáil debate and vote on who shoulders the burden of reducing carbon emissions is as important as on the financial budget. Instead, it will be decided by the Environment Minister alone after consultation with any other Ministers he considers appropriate.

The Sunday Independent – Leaders must avoid a dereliction of duty in crucial housing issue

Bringing derelict buildings back into use, whether for business or residential purposes, injects life into our towns and villages and delivers homes. Budget 2022 needs to reflect this.

Opinion piece that I wrote for The Sunday Independent.

The Sunday Independent – It isn’t a slur to criticise the Irish dependence on multinationals 

Ireland urgently needs to replace our over-reliance on a low corporate tax rate to attract employment creation with bringing our infrastructure up to speed to facilitate job creation and expansion of existing SMEs.

I wrote this opinion piece for today’s Sunday Independent.

Sunday Independent – Telecoms providers and customer service

I cannot say for sure that Irish telecoms providers have the worst customer service in the world. But, to borrow a line from Brian Clough, they are in the top one.

I was not shocked by the thousands of interactions I received on a tweet sent earlier last week about the treatment of customers by Eir, Ireland’s largest telecommunications company.

I have experienced the frustration myself. If a week is a long time in politics, then attempting to switch from one telecoms service provider to another in this country can feel like a lifetime.