Blog

So the worst kept secret in Irish politics is finally out, and the people look set to head to the ballot boxes on 29 November.The taoiseach employs several lofty explanations for why he has decided upon an early election, but it's hard to look beyond political expediency. The Fine Gael party has been flying in the polls since Simon Harris became leader in April, while the opposition is in freefall. Sinn Fein, Ireland's main opposition party, dropped to 16% in one recent poll - the lowest level of support since 2019.Its leader Mary Lou McDonald - once seen as Ireland's first female taoiseach in waiting - has been battling a serious decline in support for a year, and is bogged down in firefighting a damaging series of internal party scandals, north and south of the border.Why wait until next...

A woman who has accused Conor McGregor of raping her in a hotel bedroom has told a civil court she feared she would never see her daughter again when the mixed martial arts (MMA) fighter was "choking" her.The woman is claiming civil damages against the Irish fighter and another man, James Lawrence, alleging they sexually assaulted her in December 2018.But lawyers for the fighter, nicknamed "Notorious", are contesting the allegations and have accused her of attempted "extortion".Warning: This article contains content that some people may find distressingThe woman broke down as she described how she froze during the alleged attack, which she said "felt like it was going on for ages." Image: Conor McGregor greets fans outside the High Court in Du...

Ireland will go to the polls in a general election this month, the country's leader Simon Harris has announced. The taoiseach said the election will be held on 29 November, formally kicking off a truncated campaign which will last mere weeks. Mr Harris was appointed Irish prime minister - the youngest in the country's history - after Leo Varadkar's shock resignation in March.He will travel to Aras an Uachtarain on Friday, the official residence of the Irish president, to seek the dissolution of Ireland's Dail parliament.Mr Harris could have waited until March when the coalition's five-year term comes to an end to go to the polls, but he has been paving the way for an election in recent weeks, announcing 10.5bn euros (£8..75bn) in tax cuts and spending increases last month. "I'm looking for...

👉Listen to The World with Richard Engle and Yalda Hakim on your podcast app👈They said it was too close to call, but Donald Trump won decisively and is now set to return to the White House.In his victory speech he repeated his claim that he is the man who "will stop wars" and make the world a safer place.This week Richard and Yalda talk about what Trump's foreign policy could look like. When it comes to Ukraine, Israel, Iran and China how will he act? Source link