Public sector workers are on a collision course with the Government ahead of Wednesday's strike Old social partners are aghast at the breakdown in relations. I spoke to Kieran Mulvey, Turlough O'Sullivan and Paul Sweeney about the impasse.⤵️ www.irishtimes.com/politics/202...

Who is affected by next week’s strike and can it be averted in a last-minute deal?

Public sector industrial action presents a big challenge for parents and patients amid escalation of dispute

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The budget drops, briefings and leaks are flowing as the big day approaches. I look ahead at the political week for The Irish Times ⤵️ www.irishtimes.com/politics/202...

Budget 2027: Ministers lobby for passion projects

Inside Politics: Every 16-year-old in the State would be given a €100 ‘culture voucher’ under plans being considered

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An unusual day in Bray. I had a look at the battle between the country's criminal defence solicitors and the Minister for Justice. Two Wicklow solicitors tell the court they are quiting the legal aid panel. ⤵️ www.irishtimes.com/crime-law/co...

Criminal defence solicitors vs Jim O’Callaghan: Stakes raised during an unusual day in Bray

As two solicitors rise at the District Court to make their feelings known, on the other side of the row few practitioners are willing to speak publicly

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'September can be a shock to the system’: Congestion in Dublin and the return of the school run. Ghost buses, commuter hell - I had a look for The Irish Times. ⤵️ www.irishtimes.com/transport/20...

‘September can be a shock to the system’: Congestion in Dublin and the return of the school run

‘We’re going to work – and leaving them off, hoping the bus will show up’

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Trump emerges as keen Irish nationalist during dizzying visit. A look back at an interesting weekend and the political week ahead - for The Irish Times. ⤵️ www.irishtimes.com/politics/202...

Trump emerges as keen Irish nationalist

Inside Politics: US president offers little on Iran war and blames Ukraine’s attacks on oil refineries in Russia for driving up the price of diesel

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Rural pubs are having to pull out all the stops to keep punters coming in the door. Golf simulators, passion-fruit martinis and DJ nights. I had a look for The Irish Times. ⤵️ www.irishtimes.com/ireland/2026...

The decline of the pub in Irish towns and the rise of the passion fruit martini

One in four Irish pubs has closed over the past two decades as drinking and consumer habits have changed

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Ireland is ageing faster than expected - with the birth rate dropping sharply and more people living longer. What are the implications for pensions, healthcare and retirement? I had a look for The Irish Times. ⤵️ www.irishtimes.com/ireland/2026...

No country for old people? Ireland’s declining younger population suggests it might be

Faster-than-anticipated fall in number of children under 14 raises questions about how State will pay for ageing population

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Businesses increasingly live or die depending on online reviews. But what do they do when someone is out to get them with a fake one-star rating - or even trying to extort money? I had a look for The Irish Times.⤵️ www.irishtimes.com/ireland/2026...

‘We can get rid of them for €3,000’: How small businesses are being targeted by fake reviews

For a wedding photographer, one negative review was all it took for couples to look elsewhere

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Padel courts are popping up seemingly everywhere across Ireland - as the planning permissions fly-in. Squash and tennis courts are in many firing lines. A look at the Irish past-time of the moment. ⤵️ www.irishtimes.com/sport/2026/0...

Ireland’s padel court building boom in full swing despite high-profile planning refusals

Demand for facilities has risen significantly since Covid pandemic, according to sport’s federation

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Monaghan based Combilift tell me its US exports are set to grow over 10% this year - as it benefits from the data centre boom. This is despite a 15% tariff. With 50 people already in North Carolina, Martin McVicar plans to grow the presence further.⤵️ www.irishtimes.com/business/202...

Combilift develops US exports amid strong demand from Tesla and Google

Monaghan fork-lift manufacturer chasing in on boom in data centres and prefabricated construction

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"It’s like Big Tobacco meets the banking inquiry". Irish and EU regulators should be watching the lawsuit against Meta in the US, say experts - as concerns grow about the impact of social media on children. I had a look for The Irish Times.⤵️ www.irishtimes.com/ireland/2026...

Ireland watches closely as 29 US states sue Meta for exploiting children

Potentially seismic lawsuit draws comparisons to 1990s pursuit of tobacco industry

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My report on the damage caused by the wildfires in Ireland over the past fortnight.⤵️ ‘What was a beautiful habitat now is black soot’: Ireland’s wildfires devastate wildlife www.irishtimes.com/environment/...

‘What was a beautiful habitat now is black soot’: Ireland’s wildfires devastate wildlife

Mammals, small reptiles and amphibians losing shelter and food due to blazes in Tipperary, Wicklow and Waterford

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Irish builders are cashing in on Europe's data centre boom. And demand is growing in Ireland again. My piece for today's Irish Times⤵️ 'The boom is taking off again’: Irish builders at the heart of Europe’s data-centre growth www.irishtimes.com/business/202...

‘The boom is taking off again’: Irish builders at the heart of Europe’s data-centre growth

Concerns about grid capacity have slowed new projects in the sector but construction firms are taking their new expertise abroad

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It's the watering can for anyone with an allotment in Ireland. I visited Bohernabreena. ⤵️ ‘It’ll take an hour to water this patch’: hosepipe ban brings heavy lift for allotment holders www.irishtimes.com/ireland/2026...

‘It’ll take an hour to water this patch’: hosepipe ban brings heavy lift for allotment holders

The six-week hosepipe ban has been extended nationwide, forcing allotment owners to turn to the watering can

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The life and career of a Irish fintech boss and former punk drummer. I sat down with Navro Europe's out-going CEO, Joe Redmond. ⤵️ www.irishtimes.com/business/202...

Navro chief Joe Redmond: ‘I don’t quite fit the profile of a fintech start-up CEO at this stage in my career’

Under a licence from the Central Bank of Ireland, Navro processes foreign exchange payments across Europe

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Where does all Ireland's drinking water go in the summer and why are hosepipe bans needed? I had a look for The Irish Times.⤵️ www.irishtimes.com/environment/...

Why does Ireland need a hosepipe ban? The leaky pipes behind our water issues

Irish Water taking charge has improved the situation – but much more investment is needed

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Data centres hate the heat - and draw more power during heatwaves. So what does this mean for Ireland's straining electricity grid? And has Ireland lost its allure as a location for these behemoths? I had a look for The Irish Times.⤵️ www.irishtimes.com/ireland/2026...

Data centres in a heatwave: heaping demand on stretched electric grid during climate crisis

Soaring temperatures lead to rising use of air conditioning to keep servers cool, exacerbating the heat outside

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Intel is to pump €5 billion into Leixlip and create hundreds of new jobs there. I had a look at its remarkable turnaround story for The Irish Times last month. ⤵️

Paul Colgan@paulcolgan.bsky.social · 4mo ago

Intel is back in vogue. I had a look at what its remarkable comeback means for Ireland Inc and for Leixlip. ⤵️ www.irishtimes.com/business/202...

The Government will have to execute a delicate three-point turn when restoring the old excise rates on petrol and diesel. A look at the political landscape this Monday for The Irish Times. ⤵️ www.irishtimes.com/politics/202...

The tricky politics of unwinding petrol and diesel excise cuts

Inside Politics: Irish motorists are promised no ‘cliff edge’ as Ministers decide how to pare back fuel excise cuts

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Will the new rules on short-term lets push landlords off AirBnb and back into the rented sector? Or has Goliath bested David in the lobbying battle? I had a look for the Irish Times over the weekend.⤵️ www.irishtimes.com/ireland/hous...

Ireland’s new short-term let rules: how likely are they to work?

Observers say enforcement is required to make new rules work and more homes available to long-term renters

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Simon Harris' savings scheme has got a huge amount of media attention - but four months after it was first mentioned we still don't know what it'll look like. I ask experts why the Tánaiste keeps talking about it - and what they make of his media style.⤵️ www.irishtimes.com/politics/202...

Simon Harris wants a savings scheme for the middle class – but when will it happen?

Irish savers could soon plough billions into a tax-efficient, State-backed vehicle. But can the media-savvy Tánaiste deliver?

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Intel is back in vogue. I had a look at what its remarkable comeback means for Ireland Inc and for Leixlip. ⤵️ www.irishtimes.com/business/202...

What Intel’s remarkable comeback means for Ireland Inc, and for Leixlip

Long a touchstone for US investment in Ireland, Intel appears to be recovering from recent troubles

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Will a new scrappage scheme get people out of their old bangers and into new EVs? Irish car dealers certainly think so. But will they remain a luxury of the better-off? Reporting for The Irish Times. ⤵️ www.irishtimes.com/motors/2026/...

Scrappage scheme got Irish drivers buying diesel 20 years ago. Can new scheme do same for EVs?

Ireland has set itself the lofty target of having 845,000 electric vehicles on the roads within four years

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Ireland has never wanted nuclear power on its shores - but some senior politicians are now asking people to re-consider it. I take a look at why it is back in the conversation for the Irish Times. ⤵️ www.irishtimes.com/environment/...

In a time of sky-high oil prices, should Ireland go nuclear?

Advocates say new, smaller reactors could deliver ‘abundant, cheap and clean power – the Holy Trinity’

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The clean-up in Waterford will be long and pain-staking after the factory fire. I spoke to residents and businesses as they count the cost.⤵️ www.irishtimes.com/ireland/2026...

After the inferno: Counting the cost of the Tycor fire in Waterford

The Tycor Business Centre – much of which was destroyed in the blaze – is full of potentially deadly asbestos

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I took an extensive look at Ireland's fruit and veg producers in two features for The Irish Times. Many smaller growers have fallen by the wayside as several big players have emerged from family farms. ⤵️ irishtimes.com/business/202... irishtimes.com/business/202...

Ministers here jostle over the public finances, while Starmer faces a week of reckoning. I look at the week ahead for the Irish Times' Inside Politics digest ... www.irishtimes.com/politics/202...

O’Callaghan and Chambers call for different types of change

Nigel Farage’s Reform UK is exerting more and more influence

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Up Down.

What does the jet-fuel crunch mean for Irish holiday-makers? Some reporting for The Irish Times over the weekend.⤵️ www.irishtimes.com/ireland/2026...

‘They’ll start trimming fat routes’: How jet fuel shortages could affect Aer Lingus and Ryanair?

Consumer confidence has taken a battering since the start of the year, and when that happens, holiday bookings take a pause

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A look at Ireland's political week ahead - after the heave that never was. My Inside Politics digest for The Irish Times. ⤵️ www.irishtimes.com/politics/202...

Martin escapes leadership heave but energy issues remain

Inside Politics: Government braces for economic fallout as energy costs rise and international negotiations falter

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