Inside Politics with Hugh Linehan

At this point we are definitively into the campaign for the two referendums on family and care due to take place on March 8th. The data from the recent Irish Times/Ipsos B&A poll showed substantial majorities in favour of both proposed amendments to the Constitution, but also showed a majority of voters that felt they knew very little about the issues that are involved, which might mean that the debates that take place over the course of the campaign itself could possibly change a lot of people’s minds. The opinion pages of the Irish Times have already played host to a range of differing views on the subject, but two weekly columnists have been particularly forthright – Justine McCarthy has argued strongly in favour of the changes and Michael McDowell has been equally forceful against them. They joined host Hugh Linehan to give their thoughts ahead of March 8th. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Pat Leahy and Cormac McQuinn join Hugh Linehan to look back on the week in politics:The latest Irish Times/Ipsos B&A poll shows support for Sinn Féin took a significant dent, down six points – its lowest level in three years. As Pat explains, a lack of clarity around immigration and the misstep that was the ill-judged motion of no confidence in Justice Minister Helen McEntee last December are just two reasons why the party are losing ground to smaller parties and Independents.And data from the poll also threw up some interesting insights into what way voters will vote in both proposals in the upcoming referendums recognising non-marital families and care in the Constitution, and how much they know actually about what they are voting for.Former taoiseach John Bruton passed away this week, the panel discuss the profound consequences of his time leading government, not least the beginning of runaway economic success and the road to the Good Friday Agreement.Plus, they pick their favourite Irish Times articles of the week, on diverse topics: Ukraine war updates, Dublin traffic transformation and Dee Forbes. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Washington Correspondent Keith Duggan talks to Hugh Linehan about the seemingly inevitable rematch between US President Joe Biden and former president Donald Trump. What issues will dominate the campaign? It's early days, but the flow of immigrants at the southern border seems certain to play to former president Trump's advantage. On the other hand, voters are not yet listening to President Biden's warnings of a threat to democracy should Trump win. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In the past decade relationships between the different parts of the UK and Ireland have changed. The push for Scottish independence, growing support for Irish reunification and the Brexit process have all challenged the status quo. But what comes next? Common Ground is a new initiative by The Irish Times that will seek to elevate debate around the future of Ireland, Northern Ireland and the United Kingdom. On today’s podcast Common Ground editor Mark Hennessy talks to Hugh about the big questions the residents of these islands will grapple with in the years ahead.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Pat Leahy and Jennifer Bray join Hugh to look back on the week in politics:Pat is in Brussels where the EU has agreed on a €50 billion package for Kyiv. He reports on how Hungarian PM Viktor Orbán was finally cajoled into supporting the move. Ahead of the March referendums on care and the family, Jennifer has been looking at who's who in the Yes and No campaigns. And the panel discuss a significant shift in Government's tone on immigration which became apparent this week.Plus they look at their favourite Irish Times articles of the week on diverse topics: St Patrick's Day, The National Mood and kebabs. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Pat Leahy, Freya McClements and Mark Paul join Hugh to discuss the DUP's acceptance of a historic deal that allows power-sharing in Northern Ireland to resume. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jack Horgan-Jones and Pat Leahy join Hugh Linehan to discuss the week in politics: Gaza is proving a persistent issue in Irish politics, and today’s ruling at the International Court of Justice could place more pressure on the Government to support South Africa’s case and intensify its criticism of Israel. Meanwhile Sinn Féin has faced its own criticism for Mary Lou McDonald and Michelle O’Neill’s decision to visit the White House on St Patrick’s Day, given the military support provided to Israel by the United States. Minister Catherine Martin struggled to satisfactorily answer questions in a radio interview about the Grant Thornton report that laid bare RTÉ’s failures in the planning and conception of Toy Show: The Musical. Will there ever be accountability for the board’s failures to control the loss-making project? In the US presidential election, the primary season seems to coming to a premature end, as opposition to Donald Trump dries up and Democrats show no sign of replacing President Biden on their ticket. But what will that re-run race look like? Plus the panel pick their Irish Times pieces of the week: My article of the week is this, which goes some way to (politely) calling out some of the terrible bullshit in the whole mental health discourse: Social media and mental health: The glorification of illness is becoming a real problemNaomi O'Leary on a strange and tragic story involving a restaurant, a review and an online backlash. Martin Wolf on the bitter lessons of Brexit for BritainGeraldine Walsh on the downsides to a growing openness around mental illness Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Minister for Integration Roderic O’Gorman is the man at the centre of one of the most severe and contentious problems facing the State: how to handle the huge increase in people arriving to seek International Protection.The war in Ukraine exacerbated the trend and helped scupper the Green Minister’s plan to end the system of direct provision within the lifetime of this Government, instead leaving it in perpetual crisis-management mode as it struggles to accommodate tens of thousands of refugees.On today’s Inside Politics podcast Minister O’Gorman talks to Hugh Linehan and Jack Horgan-Jones about his handling of the crisis.Ireland should support Ukrainians to return home by rebuilding infrastructure and possibly paying for travel back there, he says.The European Union needs to soon decide whether to extend additional rights enjoyed by Ukrainian refugees beyond their expiry date of March 2025, he adds.The Minister also says he expects between 13,000 and 15,000 asylum seekers to arrive in the country annually from now on.They discuss the struggle to accommodate such unprecedented numbers of arrivals and why local communities have not always been informed in advance when International Protection Applicants are to be housed in their midst.Plus, Minister O’Gorman makes the arguments in favour of a Yes vote in the two upcoming referendums on care and the definition of the family. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Host Hugh Linehan is joined Cormac McQuinn and Jennifer Bray on this week’s wrap with housing for refugees and asylum seekers, and the lack of alternative accommodation, now a perennial talking point, especially in this year of elections. But has a certain tension developed between Minister Roderic O’Gorman’s department of Children, Equality, Integration, Disability and Youth and the Department of Housing? And have asylum seeker protests gradually started to impact political decision-making here?A somewhat comical exchange in the Dáil on its first day back after the Christmas recess saw Roderic O’Gorman and Independent Clare TD Michael McNamara engage in a debate on the upcoming referendums and the proposal to amend the Constitutional definition of a family. The durability of ‘throuple’ relationships saw a complete breakdown in communication after the Clare TD misheard the minister.And are Government putting off big decisions with that general election creeping into view later in the year? Jennifer Bray describes a certain mania she witnessed firsthand at Leinster House as TDs can’t seem to think about anything other than the date for GE 2024. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

British broadcaster and author James O'Brien returns to Inside Politics to talk about his most recent book, How They Broke Britain. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.