Celebrations, Ramadan and Diwali A special sign of the new diversity in Ireland is the various celebrations around Ramadan for the Muslim community and Diwali for the Indian community. Both these occurred this week and were celebrated with due ceremony in Dublin West which is now home to substantial Muslim and Indian communities. I was … Continue reading Joan Burton’s Dail Blog

I’m sure Bertie Ahern had a dream about how the pre-election Dail session would work out. The public finances would allow a generous budget, the SSIA accounts would produce the planned feel-good effect, all contributing to a friendly atmosphere around election time. Alas for Bertie the famous Harold Macmillan curse shattered that dream. When asked … Continue reading Joan Burton’s Dáil Blog

There is a lot of routine business on the agenda this week and ordinarily they would give rise to a full discussion. However the dominant issue remains the Bertie cash payments and there is no sign that the issue has been resolved. Obviously it is here to stay and will overshadow everything we will do … Continue reading Joan Burton’s Dáil Blog