As the Dáil breaks for the Easter recess on Thursday, proceedings may conclude earlier than scheduled.
It’s just a hunch.
The lower house, in its own quaint way, is set to rise at 8.17pm. The precision is touching (and amusingly out of touch with reality). Thursday is something of a ghost day around Kildare Street. Once lunchtime has passed, the stampede back to the constituencies begins. It is a rare day indeed when a sitting runs for all its allotted time. The place tends to be deserted by teatime.
Kick-off in Ireland’s World Cup qualifier match in the Czech Republic is at 7.45pm.
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The Dáil might not manage to eke the full two hours out of the Organisation of Working Time (Leave for Health Screening Purposes) Bill 2025.
Like we say, it’s just a hunch ...
As ever, no worries about timing for the members of the Seanad. The upper house is scheduled to rise for the holidays at 4.15pm after two hours of wrestling with Nora. It is not inconceivable that the National Oil Reserves Agency (Amendment) Bill 2026 will exhaust the members well before then.
Sure they’ll all be rat-arsed by the time a ball is kicked in Prague.
Now that the spring and Holy Week is almost upon us, the Easter lilies have returned to the Dáil, courtesy of Sinn Féin, where lapel-scaping is a big thing. Last week, party leader Mary Lou McDonald sported a Palestinian flag and a Daffodil Day daff on her lapel, which has been cleared now to make way for a discreet enamel lily. Some of her colleagues still prefer to wear the old sticky paper version.
But a new flower has appeared on the block this Easter season. Áontú’s two deputies – Peadar Tóibín and Paul Lawless − arrived in this week wearing round lily badges.
Party leader Tóibín is, of course, a former Sinn Féin stalwart, so he would know his way around the republican merchandise scene. Taking a leaf from his erstwhile comrades, Áontú has a shop on its website.
It’s woefully stocked, though. The only item for sale at the moment is the aforementioned tin badge – “Ar Son Saoirse agus Áontu na hÉireann” – retailing at a very reasonable €3 and with a choice of an orange or a green background.
“The Easter lily is a symbol of new life, freedom, peace and a tribute to our patriots. Wear this exclusive Áontu Easter lily with pride.”
Members will be wearing their lily at the party’s Easter Rising commemoration at Arbour Hill on Holy Saturday.
Peadar and crew have a way to go before they can compete with Sinn Féin. Their online store offers a handy three-pack of enamel lilies (€13.50), a 1916 enamel version (€5), an Easter lily flat cap (€25) and a Celtic cross with lily pendant (€12).
Meanwhile, the war of words continued between the Government and Opposition over the proposed measures to ease the financial burden on families and businesses hit by the energy crisis. The flashpoint issue was the Coalition’s decision to lop a derisory 2 cent off the price of a litre of home heating oil. With heating bills soaring, it’s of cold comfort to householders.
As Mary Lou McDonald pointed out, the reduction would be worth a “lousy €20” for a fill of oil “that has skyrocketed to around €1,700”.
The Government will be praying for good weather over the Easter break. When the Dáil returns in just under three weeks time, a prolonged period of sunshine might spare them a full-on repeat of Opposition fury.
Labour’s Alan Kelly also rounded off the spring session in fury mode – not over fuel charges but over the state of An Garda Síochána today.
The party’s former leader, also known as AK-47, brought a Dáil motion on Garda reform and legacy issues in the force. “This motion is one of the most important I have ever brought forward as a TD inside here,” he told the Minister for Justice, Jim O’Callaghan.
“As you know, I’m man-marking you for the last year and a half as spokesperson on Justice,” he added. Sadly, AK-47’s man-marking didn’t go as far as body-checking the Minister on his way in to the chamber, just to announce his presence in the game.
“I wanted this role.”
During a characteristically passionate contribution, he explained he expressly wanted to man-mark Jim because he believes the force needs “complete support” and vital changes within it need careful management.
He raised a number of concerning “legacy issues” which he has questioned the Minister’s department about on numerous occasions.
“I could also talk about the fact that, as I stand here, three gardaí who were suspended for years are having their suspensions and the whole issue withdrawn in court in Limerick.”
But the topic he wanted to address above all – one he has brought up many times − was the issuing of faulty holsters to gardaí and the tragic impact this has had on their lives.
AK-47 increased the noise level and went over the edge.
There was a touch of the Liam Neesons to his broadside, as he roared and stabbed the air with his finger and waved his notes in the direction of two men he wasn’t man-marking – junior Ministers Christopher O’Sullivan and Noel Grealish.
Jim O’Callaghan was gone, so Alan was reduced to fulminating over the holsters at mild-mannered Christopher and water-off-a-wily-old-duck’s-back Grealish.
“This will haunt this Government and it will haunt the previous government. It will haunt this Minister, and it will haunt Minister McEntee. And what will also haunt them is the manner in which they did not deal appropriately with protected disclosures that were made to them.
“And I guarantee that it will come back to haunt these Ministers.
“I GUARANTEE IT!”
Because if it doesn’t, AK-47 will look for Big Jim.
He will find him.
And he will haunt him.
