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Tuesday 24 November 2020
Irish politics lost a major political figure today, writes David McCann.
It’s game over for the current Executive just six months after the Assembly election, writes Dr David McCann.
TK Whitaker was just 39 when he took on the challenge of leading a dark and depressed 1950s Ireland into a brighter future.
TK Whitaker was just 39 when he became secretary at the Department of Finance.
As the South approaches the next election pressure needs to be placed upon politicians to re-engage with the peace process.
Historically it is appropriate to remember that substantial figure has gone and it is worth just remembering his substantial contribution to our politics.
As I sit here in Belfast, there are no British soldiers patrolling the streets and paramilitaries no longer conduct massive bombing campaigns because of the leadership of people like Albert Reynolds.
Gilmore’s light touch approach to Northern Ireland was one of his biggest misjudgements as a minister. Here are the three things his successor should consider…
David McCann says now is the time for action from Dublin and London who should intervene and assist political leaders in Northern Ireland.
As President Michael D Higgins takes part in an historic trip to the UK, we should reflect on what other valuable gestures could help heal old wounds, writes David McCann.
Reynolds was in office less than three years, yet his legacy still resonates today, writes David McCann. So just what should we remember about one the country’s shortest serving leaders?
The ‘silo mentality’ of Stomont doesn’t solve controversial issues or give the public confidence in politics – and it’s the reason Haass came up against a brick wall when he tried to forge common ground, writes David McCann.
Despite the highs and lows of his political career, former Taoiseach Jack Lynch was still described as “the most popular politician since Daniel O’Connell”, writes David McCann on the 14th anniversary of the death.
The fascination some politicians in Northern Ireland have with the Republic’s boom years is creating some strange political bedfellows and confusing policies, writes David McCann.
TK Whitaker’s approach to public service shows that ‘thinking outside the box’ can be invaluable in solving political, social and economic issues – he remains one of the most remarkable figures of Irish public life, writes David McCann.
There has been some speculation that Peter Robinson’s time as First Minister may be coming to an end. David McCann takes a look at the two ministers that are tipped to fill his boots.
The contemptible attack on Mayor Máirtín Ó Muilleoir put the worst aspects of Belfast city on display last week. Do we really want a city where the mayor is seen as an enemy simply because he comes from the other community? asks David McCann.
Riots in Belfast during the 12th July overshadowed glimmers of hope shown in places like Derry. Either way, Northern Ireland will ultimately sink or swim based on the actions chosen in the months and years ahead, writes David McCann.
If we want to end the partition between the Republic and Northern Ireland, then we need to embrace some realistic solutions for the economic future, writes David McCann.
In today’s poll-driven political culture we sometimes forget that to fail sometimes, you at least have to try. While Garret Fitzgerald did have failures, he also had the courage to do what he thought was right, writes David McCann.
Speaking directly to the next generation of Northern Ireland, like Obama did, is what we need, says David McCann, who writes that it is the duty of younger people to get ready, take charge and drive the agenda forward.
The introduction of a bill that would ban people convicted of serious offences from being appointed as a special advisor to a minister in Northern Ireland has raised more serious questions: who are the victims of the Troubles – and have we forgotten them?
Séan Lemass is one of the few Irish leaders whose popularity transcends political parties – but his path wasn’t always an easy one. Modern politicians could learn a lot from his approach to politics, writes David McCann.
Following the signing of the Good Friday Agreement, more than 70 per cent of people turned out to elect the first assembly. Fast forward 15 years and the people seem disenchanted, but why, asks David McCann.
In Ireland, we tend to think of Margaret Thatcher as either the prime minister who let the hunger strikers die or the pragmatist who signed the Anglo-Irish Agreement. David McCann wonders if this is too narrow a view.
It’s true Northern Ireland has come a long way over the last fifteen years, but we cannot afford to hang the ‘mission accomplished’ banner over the peace process, writes David McCann.
On the 40th anniversary of the election of the Fine Gael-Labour coalition that ended a record sixteen years of Fianna Fáil government, David McCann reflects on what lessons the current government should take from its predecessors.
Behind each death of the Troubles are real, grieving people – many of whom have been waiting for the truth for far too long, writes David McCann.
Calls for a vote on reunification betray an ignorance of the real issues affecting Ireland today, writes David McCann.
David McCann travelled to Korea, a partitioned country with a chequered economic history. The view from there is very different, he writes.
There was broad consensus that our political system needed major change, writes David McCann – but that now seems largely forgotten.
It’s not about choosing sides – Ireland should lose its timidity and commemorate fallen Irish soldiers, writes David McCann.
We’ve always decried interference into our affairs on this island – it would serve us well to afford the same approach to the 2014 referendum in Scotland.
How can a government be asked to apologise for something in recent history when the full facts have yet to be disclosed, writes David McCann.
If politicians don’t want the masked men marching in a funeral cortege to continue being seen as the real face of republicanism, writes David McCann, they need to change the conversation.
The violence during parades in Belfast last weekend have David McCann pondering the need for Unionism to appeal to Catholics as well as Protestants.
University of Ulster politics academic David McCann recalls the events of 1982 – and says we’ve never seen such a politically-charged atmosphere in this country since that turbulent year.
Can SF hope to represent voters on a 32-county basis, asks David McCann, when they can’t keep their policies aligned north and south of the border?
But this isn’t about Ireland for a change as the Falklands and Scotland look to upcoming referendums on their future, writes David McCann from the University of Ulster.
…But while the watershed campaign gave Fianna Fáil a landslide in 1977, writes David McCann, the triumph was short-lived and carries lessons for us today.
IRELAND’S LEVEL 5 restrictions are set to come to an end on Tuesday next week, 1 December, and the government is set to decide later this week what will be implemented to replace them.
Taoiseach Micheál Martin told the Irish Examiner this morning that the country will move back to Level Three restrictions from 1 December, allowing non-essential retail to reopen in time for the Christmas trade.
While retail stores look set to reopen, allowing people to get their Christmas shopping done in person, many people are still opting to do a lot of their festive shopping online their year.
So, today we want to know… Do you plan to do most of your Christmas shopping in person?
Poll Results:
Share your story: voices@thejournal.ie
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