Ireland unprepared for another Storm Éowyn as season of extreme weather looms
Trees brought down in Galway following Storm Éowyn in January. Photograph: Alan BetsonPlans to scale up the response to extreme weather events such as Storm Éowyn have not been finalised even as a new storm season approaches. It expressed disappointment that an all-of-Government review of the Storm Éowyn response was overdue and said preparations were needed urgently before another storm of that magnitude hits Ireland. “With extreme weather events continuing to increase in both magnitude and frequency, communities throughout Ireland must be better protected from their devastating impacts,” he said. A permanent, well-funded extreme weather assistance scheme for households and small businesses is recommended instead of the ad hoc arrangements used to date.
Source:The Irish Times
September 30, 2025 20:33 UTC
Teenager who lost both legs in farm accident has one goal: to return home and to school – The Irish Times
Féile O’Sullivan (13) has one main goal after she lost both her legs in a farm accident in July. Her family says the tractor accident hasn’t changed who she is but has “just changed what she now needs”. Her community in the remote town on the western tip of the Beara Peninsula has raised more than €650,000 to assist the teenager. The sports-loving teenager was airlifted to Cork University Hospital in the aftermath of the accident, which happened just days before her birthday. Féile has had as many as three operations in one day and her hospital chart is “the size of an encyclopedia”.
Source:The Irish Times
September 30, 2025 11:42 UTC
Ryder Cup: McIlroy and Lowry suffer psychological assault on ugly and unforgettable day
And as the most celebrated and most expressive player in the current game, Rory McIlroy was the obvious choice. Rory McIlroy yells to the crowd as he walks off the 17th green during the Saturday afternoon four-balls matches. Rory McIlroy and Shane Lowry celebrate their victory over Justin Thomas and Cameron Young. The Europe fans greeted McIlroy by singing “In your head, in your head, Ror-y, Ror-y” to the chorus of the old Cranberries classic. No, the American sounds on this Long Island golf day were different than just woofing, and bleaker too.
Source:The Irish Times
September 28, 2025 16:23 UTC
I was painted as a ‘pantomime villainess’: Maria Steen reflects on failed bid for presidency
In the soft luxury of the high-ceilinged lounge in an ornate south Dublin hotel sits Maria Steen, reflecting on a rollercoaster week in Irish politics. Maria Steen in Dublin. Maria Steen with Independent Senator Michael McDowell in February 2024 as part of the Lawyers for No campaign group. Steen felt it unfair to expect her to take responsibility for social media posts that had nothing to do with her. Maria Steen outside Leinster House after she failed to enter the presidential race.
Source:The Irish Times
September 27, 2025 17:40 UTC
US says EU deal on pharma trade remains in place despite Trump threat
That would appear to lift any immediate threat that the EU and Ireland could be hit with the 100 per cent tariff Mr Trump had threatened in a social media post on Friday. Mr Trump announced plans to hit pharmaceuticals with a 100 per cent import tax from October 1st, unless drugmakers were building new manufacturing plants in America. The tariff deal saw the EU agree to suck up across-the-board tariffs on future trade with the US. A commission spokesman said commitments from the Trump administration to limit any pharma tariffs to a 15 per cent ceiling were clear. Mr Trump also announced new tariffs on a number of other industries and products.
Source:The Irish Times
September 26, 2025 19:52 UTC
Catherine Connolly doubles down on warning about German rearmament
Independent presidential candidate Catherine Connolly has reiterated her belief that Germany is trying to revitalise its economy through its military industrial complex. Ms Connolly told a fireside chat with the UCD Politics Society on Wednesday she believed Germany’s rearmament was like the 1930s. They’re absolutely championing the cause of the military industrial complex in Germany, as a booster for the economy. “It’s impossible to keep the figures in your head as to what is going into the military industrial complex,” she said. Mr Allen praised Ms Connolly for “having the courage to say that Hamas is part of Palestinian society”.
Source:The Irish Times
September 25, 2025 21:58 UTC
In Heather Humphreys country: ‘It was hard to find a Protestant not in the Orange Order’
The Pringles’ story is far from unusual in the Border counties and especially in Heather Humphreys’ own county of Monaghan. In the past, it was difficult to find a Protestant who wasn’t a member of the Orange Order,” he said. Angela Graham from Drum, Co Monaghan, who is a lifelong friend of Heather Humphreys. Photograph: Lorraine Teevan Photographers“The Picnic in Drum has nothing to do with the Orange Order. The Orange Order are not running it,” says Angela Graham, a lifelong friend of Humphreys.
Source:The Irish Times
September 21, 2025 15:32 UTC
Sex tests brought in after data showed 50-60 DSD athletes in finals, World Athletics says
Caster Semenya, who won Olympic gold at the 2012 and 2016 Games, has not raced at elite level since World Athletics introduced rules requiring DSD individuals to suppress their testosterone levels. Between 50 and 60 athletes who went through male puberty have been finalists in the female category in global and continental track and field championships since 2000, according to a senior World Athletics official. World Athletics has introduced SRY screening, a gene test that uses a cheek swab to assess if someone is biologically male or female, for the world championships in Tokyo. “Everyone is watching World Athletics and we are leading in this area,” Bermon said before telling his audience that there were “approximately 50-60 cases of DSD in athletics”. “The philosophy that we hold dear in World Athletics is the protection and the promotion of the integrity of women’s sport,” Lord Coe said.
Source:The Irish Times
September 20, 2025 03:46 UTC
What did Jimmy Kimmel say about Charlie Kirk’s death?
During his Monday evening monologue, Kimmel suggested Kirk’s alleged killer, Tyler Robinson, might have been a pro-Trump Republican. But what did Mr Kimmel actually say that raised the ire of the president’s Maga movement? During his Monday evening monologue, Mr Kimmel suggested Kirk’s alleged killer, Tyler Robinson, might have been a pro-Trump Republican. Jimmy Kimmel also mentioned reaction to the death of Kirk on his Tuesday programme as well, saying “many in Maga-land are working very hard to capitalise on the murder of Charlie Kirk”. The Hollywood Reporter has said that Mr Kimmel was preparing to address the backlash on Wednesday night’s show and show how his comments had been taken out of context.
Source:The Irish Times
September 18, 2025 18:06 UTC
Social Democrats TD Eoin Hayes apologises for Barack Obama Halloween costume
Social Democrats TD Eoin Hayes has issued an apology for dressing up as Barack Obama at a Halloween party in 2012Social Democrats TD Eoin Hayes has issued an apology for wearing brown make-up on his face and hands while dressed up as former US president Barack Obama for a Halloween party. The incident took place while Mr Hayes was president of the Students’ Union in University College Cork some 16 years ago. A Social Democrats spokesperson said on Monday evening: “The Social Democrats abhor all forms of racism. The Social Democrats had been calling for economic sanctions against Israel months before Mr Hayes’s election to the council. His suspension was reviewed by the national executive of the party before being considered further by the parliamentary party and lifted in July.
Source:The Irish Times
September 16, 2025 05:17 UTC