Politics

In Latin America, just before a bankrupt state entirely runs out of money, it is traditional to try one last smashand- grab for the savings of the private citizen. We have seen this trend not just in South America’s recent financial history but down through the ages, where kings, tyrants and emperors expropriate the wealth…

For us in Ireland, the example of New Zealand should give us cause for hope, because it reveals that a new government with a fresh mandate can reverse the decline In a crisis, some countries choose to survive and others don’t. If you are prepared to act boldly, you can turn things around. History is…

No wonder the Greeks are upset. Yesterday, the IMF and the EU were busy trying to limit the damage following their mission to Greece. One auditor, also the EC representative, Servaas Deroose, encouraged the Greeks to “sell beaches” to pay back the IMF/EU loan. We should take heed, because we are next. What would you…

IT is quite surreal to see the opening days of the campaign have been dominated by arguments about whether party leaders will appear on TV programmes. This doesn’t seem to be the sort of thing that will determine the future of the country. Arguably, the next seven weeks will shape what kind of country we…

Back in the early 1990s, I was working in the Central Bank when work was under way on framing much of the Irish position on the Maastricht Treaty. Every few weeks, an Irish representative from the Department of Finance went to Frankfurt, Brussels or Basle, to Central Bank or European Finance Committee meetings. Together with…

Strange as it may seem now, the next few years offer the greatest opportunity to change Ireland. It is difficult to see beyond this crisis when many of us are mired in a deep, deep depression, but we can fix this economy and heal this society. To get out of a crisis, you must first…

It’s 8.15am on New Year’s Eve. AC/DC’s Thunderstruck – a song that, if you have been frequenting night clubs down the country recently, you’ll have noticed has replaced Amhrán na bhFiann as the finale of choice – is blasting out on the Morning Show on Radio Nova. Over on Morning Ireland, Brian Cowen is telling…

What is it? What is the difference between Donegal and Tyrone? And I don’t just mean in Gaelic football. Last Friday morning, I was trying to put my finger – or, more accurately, my foot – on it. Yes, it is something tangible. Crossing the bridge between Lifford and Strabane, I felt it underfoot –…

Most political societies are divided along lines that are broadly left and right. Not here. We all know that there are oddities in the political system in Ireland. Politics in Ireland still suffers from a civil war hangover that means our two largest parties are both ‘right-leaning’, the only option today being the now meaningless…

When I see the carry-on at Fine Gael, the week they have Fianna Fail on the ropes, I despair. Not because I have any historical allegiance to Fine Gael, but because it is the biggest opposition party and it seems to be intent on letting this appalling Government off the hook. Maybe I’m wrong, but…