Nationalist or unionist, if you care about the well-being of the island of Ireland, this is a time to be positive, writes RUTH DUDLEY EDWARDS. Published: 29 December 2020 I plead with my nationalist friends to take the advice of Colum Eastwood in his first address as...
One reason that I, originally from the southern nationalist tribe, became extremely fond of Ulster Protestants, was that mostly that they say what they mean Published: 22 December 2020 Culturally, my tribe is keen on what’s known as creative ambiguity. I’m not, not...
Today, Laois-Offaly TD Brian Stanley makes a statement to the Dáil about the recent embarrassment he has caused his party which led to him being put by his leader Mary Lou McDonald on the naughty step for a week. Published: 15 December 2020 As in so many ways, Sinn...
Published: 8 November 2020 “In current politics,” wrote respected political commentator Stephen Collins in the Irish Times on Friday, “there are two competing visions of Ireland’s future. “One is of a shared island in which all traditions are respected while the other...
I’m very relieved that Secretary of State Brandon Lewis did not cave into the pressure from politicians at home and abroad by setting up a public inquiry into the murder of Pat Finucane. Published: 1 December 2020 He has not said there will never be such an inquiry,...
Published: 26 november 2020 Four of Northern Ireland’s political parties (Sinn Fein, the equally nationalist but anti-violence SDLP, the Greens and the liberal Alliance) have sent a letter to Secretary of State Brandon Lewis calling for a public inquiry into the 1989...
Published: 16 November 2020 Is the US-UK relationship imperiled by Joe Biden’s deep affection for Ireland, which is furious with the UK over Brexit? Superficially, at least, Boris Johnson has some reason to be concerned. First, the argument goes, there are those...
I’m not a great fan of Michael D. Higgins, mainly because he sometimes lets his ego and his socialist ideology obtrude grossly on his usually good performance as Irish president — a job which requires him to be above politics. Published: 24 November 2020 For instance,...
Liam Kennedy’s astonishing book Who Was Responsible For the Troubles? begins with his attendance at a play at the West Belfast festival in 1999 with the novelist Lionel Shriver and me. Published: 17 November 2020 I remember the occasion well, for ‘Forced Upon Us’ was...
Trump may be on his way out, which I find hard to regret, but Trumpism, fortunately, is alive and well Published: 10 November 2020 This was the second US election in a row where I didn’t know which candidate I most wanted to lose. With a choice between the incumbent...
