Irish Times Inside Politics

As the deadline for completing the first stage of Brexit negotiations draws near, and with the British political establishment in the midst of a nervous breakdown, our Government is fast approaching a critical point in how it handles this most intractable of situations. Divergent national interests - on trade, on EU relations, on the border question - mean it is far from simple for us to stake out a coherent position. So what is our bottom line? Pat Leahy and Cliff Taylor join Hugh to see if they can imagine what solutions, or even the process of finding solutions, might look like. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Last month we went to the Fianna Fáil Ard Fheis for a close look at that party's policies, politics and personalities. This weekend it was Fine Gael's turn for their annual get-together, so Minister for Housing Eoghan Murphy and TD for Dublin Rathdown Josepha Madigan joined Hugh, Harry McGee and Fiach Kelly for another live recording of the podcast. They discussed the style and substance of Taoiseach Leo Varadkar's speech, the new policy proposals outlined in the "first iteration" of their "rolling manifesto", and the remaining doubt over how far we are willing to go to secure a a frictionless border with post-Brexit Northern Ireland. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

The Houses of Parliament in Westminster have been engulfed by allegations of sexual harassment in the past week. How does the environment in Leinster House compare? Fiach Kelly and Sarah Bardon join Hugh Linehan to discuss. Also on the agenda, the intense lobbying around plans for the display of alcohol in shops, why Bills are being left hanging at committee stage and Alan Shatter's Facebook post in which he said he won't stand for Fine Gael in the next general election. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Paradise Papers is the name given to a journalistic project organised by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) in Washington DC along with 96 media partners around the world, including The Irish Times.It is one of the largest data leaks in journalistic history, and involves the largest number of documents ever leaked.The leaked documents show how deeply the offshore financial system is entangled with the overlapping worlds of political players, private wealth and corporate giants, including Apple, Nike, Uber and other global companies that avoid taxes through increasingly imaginative bookkeeping maneuvers.Irish Times Legal Affairs Correspondent Colm Keena has been working on the project, and on this podcast he talks to Hugh Linehan about what has been uncovered, including the investments made by famous figures such as Bono and Queen Elizabeth, and the legal advice received by AIB when The Revenue Commissioners requested information about offshore deposits. See acast.com/privacy for

Hugh Linehan speaks with American author, historian and academic Timothy Snyder about his book On Tyranny: Twenty Lessons from the Twentieth Century, in which he makes provocative and unsettling comparisons between today's politics and the rise of the Third Reich and suggests how we can avoid the terrible mistakes of the past. Timothy Snyder is a professor of history at Yale University and a permanent fellow at the Institute for Human Sciences in Vienna. He has spent ten years in Europe, and speaks five and reads ten European languages. He has also written for The New York Review of Books, Foreign Affairs, The Times Literary Supplement, The Nation, and The New Republic as well as for The New York Times, The International Herald Tribune, The Wall Street Journal, and other newspapers. He is the author of several award-winning books including The Red Prince: The Secret Lives of a Habsburg Archduke, Bloodlands: Europe Between Hitler and Stalin, and Black Earth: The Holocaust as History and Warning. See acast.com/

Labour is in the doldrums, stuck on five or six per cent in the polls and struggling to have its voice heard. What are its chances of getting back to ten per cent or more by the next election? Is its brand becoming less toxic? What is the purpose of Labour in Ireland now?Guests: Fiach Kelly, Political Correspondent; Ed Brophy, political columnist with the Sunday Independent and former chief of staff to Tánaiste Joan Burton; and Dublin City Councillor Rebecca Moynihan, who will run for Labour in the Dublin South Central constituency in the next election. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Hugh and Pat are joined by Social Affairs Correspondent Kitty Holland and columnist Fintan O'Toole to discuss the direction being taken by Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil at the Abortion Committee, and why "scandal" is the perfect word to describe the tracker mortgage situation - there are cries of outrage and numerous investigations, and ultimately no-one will be held accountable. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Irish-American politician Martin O'Malley is best known for terms as governor of Maryland and mayor of Baltimore, and for his unsuccessful run for the Democratic presidential candidacy in 2016. Earlier this week he talked to Political Correspondent Harry McGee about his Irish connections, his upbringing and political philosophy, his views on the Trump presidency and how he squares his own liberal views on abortion and marriage equality with his Catholicism. He also shed some light on his relationship with David Simon, creator of tv show The Wire which portrayed the social and political problems of Baltimore in the early 2000s. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Taoiseach Leo Varadkar held a number of press conferences throughout Storm Ophelia, did live interviews and donned a high-vis jacket to assess the resulting damage in its aftermath.On today's podcast, Pat Leahy, Sarah Bardon and Harry McGee from the politics team join Hugh Linehan to discuss the government’s disaster response and compare it to that of previous years.The panel also discuss the Oireachtas committee examining the Eighth Amendment, the Fianna Fáil ardfheis last weekend and the upcoming EU summit where Brexit will take centre stage. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Inside Politics has made the short trip from its office to the RDS where a resurgent Fianna Fáil are holding their annual Ard Fheis, to ask whether the party is really ready to return to government after a long spell in the political wilderness. Joining Hugh, Pat and Sarah were Dara Calleary and Fiona O'Loughlin, while Fiach canvassed the opinions of some special guests in the audience. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Philosopher A.C. Grayling is known for his writings on the intersections between belief systems, individual liberties and systems of government. In his new book Democracy And Its Crisis, he explores the challenges facing representative democracy today. He talked to Hugh Linehan about his ideas, including the "weaponisation" of social media, potential reforms to our political systems and when referendums are useful. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

No big bonanza and no pyrotechnics, but Budget 2018 is more exciting than it might seem on the surface. So say the Irish Times political team. Paschal Donohoe may not have found any money down the back of the couch, but has he delivered a budget that will take this government to the next election?On today’s Inside Politics podcast, Pat Leahy, Fiach Kelly and Mary Minihan join Hugh Linehan to discuss the political impact of the measures introduced in today’s budget. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Pat Leahy talks to Hugh Linehan about the results of the latest Irish Times Ipsos/MRBI poll.The poll showed greater support for a limited revision of abortion restrictions than their outright removal. But some pro-choice activists have criticised how the question was framed - Hugh puts their position to Pat. And there's time at the end to look at the other major finding: Taoiseach Leo Varadkar is the most popular party leader with an impressive 49% approval rating. But will his rising tide lift other boats for Fine Gael? See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

With just six days left until Leo Varadkar and Paschal Donohoe announce their first Budget as Taoiseach and finance minister respectively, the most surprising thing in the lead up to it has been the lack of anything surprising.On today's podcast, Cliff Taylor joins Fiach Kelly and Hugh to discuss the likelihood of any big bombshell being dropped next Tuesday, at a time when money is tight and any significant giveaway would have to be financed either through tax increases or cuts to another department.They also discuss the reaction in Leinster House to the political unrest surrounding the Catalonia independence referendum in Spain and whether or not Taoiseach Leo Varadkar can get away with going to gigs anymore, after the LCD Soundsystem debacle. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Novelist and former political journalist Robert Harris returns to Inside Politics to discuss his new novel 'Munich', set over the course of the four-day crisis talks between the British, French and Nazi governments which prevented the outbreak of war in 1938. He talks about the modern misapprehension of Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain, the nature of appeasement and the current state of politics in the United Kingdom as it moves through the painful Brexit process. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Sinn Fein TD for Dublin Mid-West Eoin Ó Broin joins Hugh, Pat and Sarah to discuss the forthcoming referendum on the 8th Amendment, Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael's recent attacks on Sinn Féin, whether there is a culture of bullying in the party, and also its stance on property tax. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Ten years after an economic and social crisis that it seemed would change the Irish political landscape utterly, the political dominance of Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael is diminished - but continues. Are we destined to be governed by these organisations forever? As part of the Dublin Podcast Festival, Pat Leahy, Mary Minihan and Fiach Kelly joined Hugh in front of a live audience at The Workman's Club in Dublin to take a close look at our two main political parties today. How do they see themselves and one another? How has the upheaval of the last decade changed them, and where are they headed ideologically?Thanks to Alan Bennet and everyone working on the Podcast Festival. Thanks also to Alan Kinsella for providing our backdrop of historic election literature. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Hugh is joined by Harry McGee and Fiach Kelly to discuss everything and anything on the political agenda this week, including pre-budget skirmishes between Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil, President Michael D Higgins's noteworthy appearance at the ploughing festival, a potential Water Referendum, and the return to work of the members of Dáil Eireann after a long, damp summer. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

This week Hugh, Pat and Harry are joined by Minister of State at the Department of Housing Damien English to talk about the latest news on the housing crisis, the resignation of Noirin O'Sullivan and what we can expect from the Taoiseach as the political season begins. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

The negative reaction to Fianna Fáil TD and spokesman on housing Barry Cowen's proposal to incentivise building by reducing VAT rates for builders shows the mistrust that is a legacy of the housing crash could still be a problem for the party. Hugh and Pat talk to Deputy Cowen who defends his proposal and Fianna Fáil's legacy when it comes to housing. Later on we go to Fiach Kelly at the Sinn Féin think-in to hear about the future Gerry Adams' leadership (still murky) and the party's desire for power and a role in southern government (crystal clear). See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.