Politics

Harney must be held accountable

Mary Harney is to blame for the failure of the health regulatory system to monitor what was going on in Leas Cross and other nursing homes over the last several years. Her predecessors, Micheál Martin and Brian Cowen, are also to blame for these egregious failures, but for now it is Mary Harney's head that should be on the block.

Shared-ownership housing scheme inadequate

A housing survey, carried out by Sinn Féin has highlighted the inadequacy of the shared ownership scheme in the Dublin area. The survey found just 12 properties in the four Dublin local authorities that came in within the budgets of the shared ownership scheme.

Maybe minister

Minister of State Tom Parlon has deflected controversy successfully since his appointment in 2002 but the ex-IFA president faces an uncertain future as next year's election approaches. By Frank Connolly

Bertie's City West charade is indicative of the devaluing of democracy

On prime time television on Saturday night, 4 November, Bertie Ahern will address the nation from the City West hotel outside Dublin in what will be no more than an extended party political broadcast, under the guise of being a party conference. The sole purpose of Saturday's event is to garner publicity in the run-up to the next general election and Fianna Fáil will have another bite of this cherry in March when it has another "party conference".

 

Paisley gets to say yes, again

The recent talks at St Andrews were a logistical nightmare for the British government. They were in the Fairmount Hotel. The Fairmount Hotel is big. It is modern. Las Vegas-sized. It is close to the Scottish coastline. During the recent talks it was also host to golfers, American families, a huge amount of mostly eastern European waiters and waitresses and a multitude of cops on the lookout for al Qaida.

Bertie's story is a typical one

  • 18 October 2006
  • test

I have a declaration to make. I once almost accepted a favour from a friend who was also a businessman. Some years ago, having been embroiled for several months in hugely costly family-law proceedings in two jurisdictions, I was staring bankruptcy in the face. For a while it looked as if I might lose my home in Dublin and I was already trying to sell a second property I had purchased for family reasons in London. As the market had slumped since I'd bought this house, it was proving somewhat difficult to shift.

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