Complaint v Ireland to European Commission re process appointing ex-Meta lobbyist as Data Protection Commissioner
in the area of data protection, equality, energy, transport, financial services) play an essential role in implementation and enforcement. There was no cooling-off period between the appointee working as a lobbyist for the tech industry and becoming Ireland’s Data Protection Commissioner. This is inimical to the role of independent data protection supervisory authorities under the Charter and to the credibility of the Union’s data protection regime. [35] This is the first and only such action ever taken by any data protection supervisory authority. Since one of the two sitting commissioners has no prior expertise in data protection, the members of Ireland’s data protection supervisory authority include only a single individual who may claim to have any depth of knowledge on data protection.
Source:The Irish Times
October 28, 2025 13:05 UTC
Seven seriously ill children evacuated from Gaza to Ireland
Photograph: AFP via Getty ImagesSeven seriously ill children were successfully evacuated from Gaza to the Republic via Jordan on Saturday night. Saturday’s mission is the third successful medical evacuation of its kind. The World Health Organisation (WHO) worked to bring the children from Gaza to the border with Jordan in a medevac convoy. The third successful medical evacuation was confirmed by Tánaiste Simon Harris and Minister for Health Jennifer Carroll MacNeill. Children’s Health Ireland chief executive Lucy Nugent said it was “meaningful and emotional that we can in some way help the children of Gaza”.
Source:The Irish Times
October 27, 2025 22:55 UTC
Seán Kelly says he was ‘shafted’ by Fine Gael over presidential nomination
Photograph: Nick Bradshaw for The Irish TimesFine Gael MEP Seán Kelly has claimed he was “shafted” by his party when colleagues in Leinster House declined to back him to run for the presidential election. Mr Kelly claimed that Heather Humphreys, who went on to lose to a Catherine Connolly landslide last weekend, had been “anointed” as the candidate. In particular, I think they were quite disappointed with the way the nomination process was handled,” Mr Kelly said. Mr Finucane said he felt Mr Kelly “didn’t get a chance”. “Seán Kelly is fluent in Irish, and I believe that the party made a cardinal mistake in their nomination,” he added.
Source:The Irish Times
October 27, 2025 22:50 UTC
Plastic Halloween bones will still be around centuries after ours have fed the Earth – The Irish Times
Gardens near my house have half-buried skeletons emerging from the lawns, some with shreds of tissue still adhering. I saw skulls on a barbecue yesterday, as if the residents were planning human brains for tea. It’s like a simulation of a particularly horrifying civil war, scenes too violent for newspapers and television. You’d think the people of suburban Dublin were going about their business ignoring continual, open-air mass killing and torture. They represent sadism without suffering, dismemberment and execution without pain, because they are made of petrochemical rather than organic material, plastic not flesh.
Source:The Irish Times
October 27, 2025 22:42 UTC
We need to stop frivolous legal challenges that add thousands to cost of building homes
An illustration of the planned development at the former Central Mental Hospital site in Dundrum, which has been held up for two years by legal challenges. Judicial reviews, once a key check on major planning decisions, have become a weapon of delay, not justice. Legal challenges, often taken on the thinnest of grounds, can hold up a project for years, sometimes killing them entirely. Too often, it’s less about protecting nature than about using the legal system as a stage for personal crusades. In tandem, the bar for judicial reviews needs to be raised and all parties need to be at risk of incurring costs.
Source:The Irish Times
October 27, 2025 22:42 UTC
Trial of man accused of Shinzo Abe’s murder to shine light on dark side of Japan
The much-awaited trial of the man accused of murdering former prime minister Shinzo Abe starts on Tuesday. Yamagami was born the son of a construction boss in 1980 into a prosperous family that subsequently fell apart. Overwhelmed by these tragedies, Yamagami’s mother joined the Unification Church. Now known as the Family Federation for World Peace and Unification, or the Moonies, the church became noted in Japan for preying on misfortune. Family members say Yamagami’s mother sold the family home and donated the proceeds, along with her husband’s life insurance, to the church.
Source:The Irish Times
October 27, 2025 22:33 UTC
Catherine Connolly landslide sparks hope for left-wing unity but soul-searching in FF
Photograph: Dan DennisonThe fallout from the landslide win for Catherine Connolly in the presidential election began immediately this weekend. Mary Lou McDonald congratulates Catherine Connolly as she arrives to the final announcement of the 2025 presidential election on Saturday. Ms Connolly said during the campaign it was “at the core of our neutrality”. Dublin South-West TD Mr Lahart said: “Fianna Fáil has suffered. Meanwhile congratulations continued to roll in for president-elect Ms Connolly after her overwhelming victory in Friday’s election.
Source:The Irish Times
October 27, 2025 22:33 UTC
Theft tourism, romance fraud and the odd kidnapping: On duty with gardaí at Dublin Airport
When Dublin Airport opened 85 years ago, the original terminal building was intended to cater for 100,000 passengers a year. Garda Peter Mullins and Garda Debbie Burnett on duty at Dublin Airport. “I loved the community policing work,” says Burnett, who was previously based at the Bridewell, then Store Street in Dublin city centre. Movement between the different areas of the airport and out around the planes comes with strict rules for the gardaí. In the airport, Burnett says, violent encounters are very rare, with drugs more commonly at the heart of the most serious crime.
Source:The Irish Times
October 27, 2025 22:32 UTC
Push to increase flu and RSV vaccine uptake as seasonal illness rises
The HSE is encouraging people who do not usually avail of a flu vaccine to get the jab. “They’re devising regional plans [and] identifying areas of low uptake – identifying groups where there’s low uptake and focusing resources and maximising uptake in those groups and those areas." The flu vaccine is being indicated among this cohort, as opposed to workers being asked to get both flu and covid jabs. Dr Henry described the rollout of RSV vaccine to newborn babies in hospital last year as a “very positive story”, with 85 per cent uptake. This year, the health service has expanded the vaccine programme to babies aged up to six months as of September 1st.
Source:The Irish Times
October 27, 2025 22:32 UTC
Prosecutions for ‘withholding information’ are rare. That may change after Puska family cases
The successful prosecution of three members of the family of Jozef Puska for withholding information concerning his murder of Ashling Murphy may encourage more such prosecutions, lawyers believe. The outcome of the Puska family case could act as a deterrent to others against withholding information on serious crime, he added. Istokova pleaded guilty before the trial to withholding information. A landmark Supreme Court decision six years ago may have encouraged the DPP to proceed with the withholding information charge. He was not told his failure to respond to questioning could lead to a separate charge of withholding information.
Source:The Irish Times
October 27, 2025 22:32 UTC
Cash is all but dead: How to navigate the complex world of virtual money
It doesn’t, but it has been facilitating near instant money transfers for a long time now, and our banks have been laggards in the space. If the world is going digital, central bank money should go digital”. I am confused, Can we not already make instant payments using Sepa Instant and Revolut and – soon Zippay not to mention Apple and Google Pay? The promise is that the digital euro will be almost as private as banknotes – not quite, but almost as private as banknotes.”And what is the time frame for this digital euro? The EU wants its digital euro to compete with the US stablecoin, but for it to do so, it must first create it.
Source:The Irish Times
October 27, 2025 22:31 UTC
Bring the outside in by embracing natural tones and colours in your home
Anyone who has ever decorated their home will know the agony and ecstasy of choosing paint colours. When you choose colours which echo the natural world, they bring warmth, comfort, and authenticity to a space, season after season. “Bedrooms often suit softer, cocooning shades like Water Lilies, Seafoam, or the dusky pink tones of Lerici and Tempest. Neutral or earthyNature is also an inspiration at Colourtrend, where the new range is inspired by natural colours found in woodlands across Ireland. Also, use colour to enhance space, lighter tones open up smaller rooms; deeper hues can make large rooms feel more intimate.
Source:The Irish Times
October 27, 2025 22:12 UTC
Councils get €70m property tax boost as revaluations and new properties add to pot
Local Property Tax: Local authorities will receive about 10 per cent more from revised evaluations and new properties in 2026. Photograph: Bryan O'BrienThe country’s 31 local authorities will receive €767 million from the local property tax (LPT) in 2026, according to figures published by the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage. Just three local authorities will apply cuts to their charges next year, Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown, Fingal and South Dublin County Council (SDCC). The €767 million total for the 31 local authorities for next year includes central Government supports of €142.3 million to 21 local authorities with low LPT bases. The €767 million total is 69 per cent more than the €453 million allocated a decade ago.
Source:The Irish Times
October 27, 2025 22:08 UTC
If Micheál Martin survives this, his achievement will almost rival Catherine Connolly’s – The Irish Times
Catherine Connolly’s election is a nadir for Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael. But if Fianna Fáil or Fine Gael fall back, and they can’t make it together, Sinn Féin can and would consider a deal with Fianna Fáil under new leadership. There is deep dissatisfaction in Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael with their respective leaders – but if change is attempted, it is not assured. The Fine Gael ecosystem is parched and its circle of decision makers is too small and too incapable of renewal. Unlike Fine Gael, Fianna Fáil has choices and perhaps just enough energy left to exercise them.
Source:The Irish Times
October 27, 2025 22:03 UTC
Toy libraries are helping families save money, cut down on clutter and reduce waste
Families can save money by borrowing toys that are quickly outgrown instead of buying them, says Toy Libraries Ireland. Nearly 80 per cent of all toys end up in landfill, incinerators or the ocean, according to Toy Libraries Ireland. Set up and run on a voluntary basis by individuals and community groups who are passionate about high-quality, sustainable play, toy libraries are helping families to save money, cut down on clutter and reduce waste. You’ll find toy libraries at the Carrig Centre in Ballincollig, Cork, in Ongar community centre in northwest Dublin, and in the Flemington centre in Balbriggan too, says Toy Libraries Ireland. Toy Libraries Ireland has put together a “how-to” guide providing practical information for getting your community toy library off the ground.
Source:The Irish Times
October 27, 2025 21:58 UTC