Michael McDowell

Depending on one’s point of view, Minister for Housing’s landmark creation is either a dangerous folly or an architectural gem

Minister for Justice says new procedure ‘just and fair’ in process used less than 10 times since 1956

With reform repeatedly promised and not delivered, the only way to fix the lack of Seanad reform it is at the next Dáil election

Senator describes 747-page Bill as ‘telephone directory’ and a ‘massive supertanker coming to dock in a very small port’

Labour Senator warns of ‘fundamental flaw’ as Upper House debates third largest Bill in history of State

Sloganeering about “populism” is over the top when discussing real peoples’ real concerns for their city

Michael McDowell: The recent debate proved Biden is well past his political sell-by date and urgent action is required to prevent the unthinkable of Donald Trump reclaiming the White House

Self-inflicted economic, diplomatic and strategic damage will be blamed on Rishi Sunak by Tory media and not on Michael Gove, Boris Johnson, Liz Truss or the Brexit-cheerleading media itself

The question needs to be asked why Ireland, on the geographical periphery of the EU, is facing 30,000 claims for international protection each year

The mutual backslapping between Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael marked a watershed moment in Irish politics, but voters need more choices than just a hard-left coalition or the status quo

Successive ministers in the department have failed utterly to appreciate this fact

Michael McDowell: Democracy has never hung on such a fraying thread since the dark days of the 1930s

Referendums are not mere political games. What we now know happened should have political consequence

A recently announced Dublin taskforce is typical of the campaign to counter falling support for Harris's government

What exactly will it be illegal to say in future that it is not currently illegal to say? Nobody seems to know

While the Rwanda option remains on the UK’s statute book, Irish courts will be obliged to refuse deportation of migrants refused asylum to the UK

TD Verona Murphy was scandalised by the allocation of school buses in Kilkenny, but her fellow Senators and TDs were in a more celebratory mood with May Day, Mary-Lou’s birthday and Lyric FM all on the list

Discussion of gender identity among children and adolescents has become much more prominent in the last decade. Questions remain about the extent to which schools should deal with such complex issues

Compromise should never be a dirty word in any true democrat's lexicon, says former tánaiste as he unveils plaque to War of Independence hero, Sean O'Donoghue

Expectation is Dáil and Seanad will vote in favour of opting into pact, but volatility of views on immigration issues means outcome is far from certain