Arthur Beesley

Dublin

Economics Editor at Irish Times

Journalist at The Irish Times. Dubliner. Any views mine only.

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Articles

Eurovision Song Contest: How are organisers reacting to criticisms of Israel?

5 days ago | irishtimes.com | Arthur Beesley

It’s Eurovision season but the event is mired in controversy over Israel. What‘s going on? The 69th annual Eurovision Song Contest takes place next week in Basle, Switzerland, beginning on Tuesday, with the first semi-final, before the Saturday grand finale. With a TV audience in the hundreds of millions, the event is one of the biggest in showbiz. Ireland‘s entrant is Norwegian singer Emmy Kristine Guttulsrud Kristiansen, stage name Emmy, who will appear in the second semi-final on Thursday.
Review under way into DAA’s international duty free and consulting operations

6 days ago | irishtimes.com | Arthur Beesley

Dublin Airport operator DAA is reviewing its international duty free and consulting operations, raising questions over the terms on which the State-owned business invests in global aviation markets. The internal review of duty free retailer Aer Rianta International (ARI) and management consultancy arm DAA International (DAAI) comes amid uncertainty over their growth prospects after failing to land new contracts they had targeted.
RTÉ seeks discussion over Israel’s inclusion in the Eurovision Song Contest

1 week ago | irishtimes.com | Arthur Beesley

The director general of RTÉ, Kevin Bakhurst, has asked the European Broadcasting Union for a discussion on Israel’s participation in the Eurovision Song Contest. In a statement, Bakhurst said: “I am appalled by the ongoing events in the Middle East and by the horrific impact on civilians in Gaza, and the fate of Israeli hostages.
An Bord Pleanála failure to decide on applications delays up to 6,000 apartments

1 week ago | irishtimes.com | Arthur Beesley

Planning for some 6,000 “fast-track” apartments has stalled for more than three years, delaying construction after An Bord Pleanála failed to decide on 18 applications from 2021 and 2022. New figures show the planning body has still not overcome the legacy of the 2022 governance scandal that halted decision making on key files. These included strategic housing development (SHD) plans, a 2017 process that was supposed to accelerate apartment building.
‘Thousands’ of new homes delayed due to electricity access

1 week ago | irishtimes.com | Arthur Beesley

Homebuyers struggling to find a property are facing a new supply crunch with “thousands” of new homes being delayed because they can’t access electricity. The slowdown in power-grid connections comes despite a big Government push to escalate housing output this year, after new home deliveries fell in 2024. ESB Networks, the State-owned company responsible for grid connections, acknowledged “limited” capacity in some locations.
Officials warned of ‘uncertainty’ in housing completions outlook

1 month ago | irishtimes.com | Arthur Beesley

New information has come to light on disputed building forecasts in files showing housing officials believed the target of 40,000 new homes would not be met until 2025, a year later than Government claims in the general election. Following the poll on November 29th, Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael returned to power with Independents after campaigning on the basis that housing output was on track to rise to 40,000 new homes in 2024.
Trump tariffs climbdown: What happens next as global trade tensions ease?

1 month ago | irishtimes.com | Arthur Beesley

After a week of heavy losses, global markets are surging. What happened? The rebound comes the morning after an abrupt U-turn by Donald Trump over the “Liberation Day” plan for tariffs on global trade that he set out one week ago. The reciprocal tariffs were additional levies above the 10 per cent baseline tariff that Trump proposed by way of penalties with scores of international trading partners he said were treating the US unfairly.
Churches should ‘do the right thing’ on mother and baby home redress, Norma Foley says

1 month ago | irishtimes.com | Arthur Beesley

Minister for Equality Norma Foley has urged the Catholic church and the Church of Ireland to “do the right thing” on mother and baby home redress after years of talks with eight church bodies ended without a financial contribution in most cases. “There is an opportunity as I’ve said for the orders to rethink their position,” Ms Foley told reporters at Government Buildings. “Just to say this reference is not just to the Catholic hierarchy, we’re also talking about the Church of Ireland.
South Dublin County Council seeks pass from itself for land deemed taxable on its own map

1 month ago | irishtimes.com | Arthur Beesley

A local authority in Dublin has made a public application to its own planners seeking exemptions for council-owned land, after the properties were deemed liable for tax on maps made by the body itself. The submission from South Dublin County Council means its own officials must decide whether the local authority should receive a tax pass on housing land it owns in Tallaght, Clondalkin and Knocklyon.
Church orders’ refusal to pay mother-and-baby home redress leaves Government with dilemma

1 month ago | irishtimes.com | Arthur Beesley

Government efforts to persuade religious groups to pay money for mother-and-baby home redress have run aground, after prolonged talks finished with only one “serious offer” of cash from an order of nuns. Four years after talks began, a report delivered to Minister for Equality Norma Foley suggests the end point is rather like the 2021 starting point. The Bon Secours sisters committed again to paying, but there was little or nothing by way of cash offers from any other order.