I4C Trouble with Daly and Wallace

The EU’s proposed Digital Green Certificate- A travel certificate those who have been tested, vaccinated or recently recovered from Covid-19- has provoked strong reactions in Ireland. Many are worried about the implications of the certificate, while others see it as a potential lifeline for the tourism industry.This week Clare and Mick are diving into the issue and talking us through the Digital Green Certificate- what is it? how will it affect people in the EU? and should we be concerned?

This week, Clare and Mick posed questions to the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) over whistleblower reports of a cover-up around the chemical weapons investigation in Douma, Syria in 2018. On the podcast they discuss the Douma whistleblower testimonies and the need for the OPCW to meet with the dissenters. They’re also chatting about French MEP Nathalie Loiseau's reactions to their questions on the Douma report and the attention this all got in the Irish media.Finally, there’s football… Mick talks about the cancelled Super League and we learn about how governments use football teams as “sportswashing.”

Ecuador has just elected right-wing former banker, Guillermo Lasso as president.Clare and Mick were in Ecuador observing the elections.In this episode they report back, giving us the lowdown on the political reality in Ecuador, the electoral process and the outlook for the country going forward.

Repeated US invasions, years of US occupation and the frontline of the fight against ISIS… Iraq is a country that has suffered some of the most severe consequences of foreign interference in the Middle EastClare and Mick spent the past week in Iraq, meeting key decision makers on the ground, listening to them and learning more about the challenges that the country faces.Here’s the real story of that visit, straight from the horse’s mouth

We’ve got something a little different for you this week. Justin Podur, Associate Professor at York University's Faculty of Environmental and Urban Change, is joining Mick and Clare to discuss the recent agricultural reforms and the farmer’s protests that they have provoked in India.See more of Justin’s work including his Anti Empire Podcast on his website https://podur.org/

This week China has hit back at EU sanctions by sanctioning some members of the European Parliament Committee on Human Rights. Mick and Clare give us the inside story on what is happening there and go in-depth about the EU’s invoking of human rights where and when it suits them.They’re also talking about vaccine passports and EU exports of banned pesticides to third countries, before touching down in sunny Lisbon and chatting about Portugal’s role in the European Parliament. 

In our post-paddy’s day episode Mick and Clare are giving us the lowdown on all things Austria. There’s also talk of pastures closer to home and the Irish government’s failure to “green” their agricultural policies as well as the farmers in India taking to the streets in some of the biggest protests in history.Also on the agenda: vaccines (what else?), the trend towards in camera (private) European Parliament meetings, and US foreign policy under Biden who, despite his positive reception by many in Europe, looks set to be more belligerent than Trump.*correction: in the episode Mick mentions a football match between Germany and Austria in 1982, which was fixed to deliberately exclude a third team from qualifying. The team that they were trying to prevent qualifying was Algeria, not Tunisia.

This week, the US, EU states and others came together to block a petition by over 80 developing countries to lift patents on vaccines at the World Trade Organisation. Rich countries delivering yet another blow to global health...That’s not all Mick and Clare are sounding off about, they’re also talking about the European Parliament decision to waive the political immunity of three Catalan MEPs, the conflict in Syria ten years on, and the way the EU picks and chooses which human rights violations matter, and which ones don’t… It’s hypocrisy unbounded.We’re also jumping back into the tour of the EU member states with a deep dive into Poland. There’s been a lot of discussion of Poland’s rule of law (or lack of it) and the existence of LGBTI exclusion zones in Poland recently. So what are Mick and Clare’s impressions of the Poles in the Parliament? And who’s been spreading misinformation to the Polish public about crisp sandwiches?

The vaccine rollout is all anyone is talking about at the moment and Mick and Clare are no exception. They give us the inside scoop on what’s happening at EU level and why the UK’s relative success with the rollout is an argument for stronger public healthcare systems.Then back on the EU tour where the next pitstop is… Estonia. Mick and Clare take us on a tour of this little Baltic country and its Members of the European Parliament who are leading the charge on anti-Russian sentiment...

The first stop on Clare and Mick’s virtual whirlwind tour of the EU member states is… The Czech Rep- ahem Czechia… What’s going on in Czech politics? who have they got in the European Parliament? and what on earth is a pirate party?Then on to discussions of China, new EU sanctions on Venezuela, and the carbon “bootprint” of the military sector