If a report card were to be prepared for the Dáil as it enters its three month summer recess on 1 July, it would read "poor performance should do better". During the 93 sitting days in this Dáil year (from 29 September to 1 July), a total of 39 bills were proposed and 18 were enacted. This is in sharp contrast to the previous Dáil year where 61 bills were proposed and 41 were passed into Acts.
Aengus O' Snodaigh: There has been talk of his connections to criminal activity; one of his campaigners was jailed for membership of the IRA; and his wife was found guilty of public order offences. But he says all that matters is his constituency work
The year 1982 was "plagued by scandal", threats to democracy, fear and loathing, according to Part III of the Haughey series. The reality is the "scandals" were wildly exaggerated, there was open treachery within Fianna Fáil and the Haughey government promised economic rescue, five years before it happened. By Vincent Browne
Cowed parliament, a dominated media, an apathetic public: this is the state of our democracy, according to the Democracy Commission. Hilary Curley reports
Substantial changes to the Garda Bill were rushed through the Dáil over the course of only two days causing widespread criticism among opposition parties, human rights bodies and legal academics writes Hilary Curley
When Michael McDowell opened his address to the Fianna Fáil Parliamentary meeting on Tuesday with the words: "Taoiseach and friends", they were greeted with hoots of laughter and someone shouted: "It can only go downhill from here".
Róisín Shorthall is anti-abortion, thinks curfews should be imposed on young people and has said the social welfare system encourages some young women to have babies by rewarding them financially. Yet she is seen as one of the strongest female left-wing voices in the Dáil.
Following the scandal of Garda corruption in Donegal and considering Michael McDowell's blaming of Nora Owen's inertia over the McBrearty case, it seems astounding that the Minister has acted in such a cold and aloof manner after a child has died in police custody. The question now hanging in the air is, "Where is the Justice Minister?"
That was a cruel trick the Irish Times played on the opposition parties. On Saturday 11 June they published the first instalment of an opinion poll which seemed to have evidence to back up Pat Rabbitte's assertion that a pre-election pact would give a spur to new support for the opposition. but the second instalment on the following Monday demolished this illusion.
At the time of the abolition of the dual mandate, Mildred Fox colourfully explained to the Dail why being a TD and a Councillor were reconcilable. She said that, since the council met for just six hours a month, it took up "less time than Coronation Street." Her contribution to Dail debate since then has taken up less time than one episode of Coronation Street.