Jack Horgan-Jones

1 week ago | irishtimes.com | Jack Horgan-Jones

Tánaiste Simon Harris has said that he intends to seek Government agreement to draft legislation restricting trade with the occupied territories before the summer break. It comes as Senator Frances Black, who first introduced legislation to restrict such trade in 2018, urged that the legislation be brought forward before the Dáil rose for its summer break – but also that it be sent to the Foreign Affairs Committee for pre-legislative scrutiny beforehand as well.

1 week ago | irishtimes.com | Jack Horgan-Jones

The Government is to speed up ratification of the European Union-Canada trade deal – known as Ceta [Comprehensive Economic Trade Agreement] – which was shelved in a Supreme Court judgment during 2022. The trade agreement was the subject of a legal challenge from then Green Party TD Patrick Costello, with the Supreme Court finding the government’s approach was unconstitutional and forcing the previous coalition to pause its plan to ratify the deal.

1 week ago | irishtimes.com | Jack Horgan-Jones

Uisce Éireann told the government that €1 billion given to it in last year’s budget does not provide additional funding for the utility, saying this was “in direct contradiction” to the impression given to the public. In its last budget before the election, the outgoing coalition said it was allocating billions from the proceeds of AIB share sales to provide additional ringfenced funding for capital spending – including €1 billion for Uisce Éireann.

1 week ago | irishtimes.com | Jack Horgan-Jones

There is little evidence of post-Covid “scarring” to the labour market as consumers spent their lockdown savings to drive recovery, a new paper from the Department of Finance has found. Research published today marks five years since the pandemic. It finds the introduction of strict public health measures to reduce contact between people was a “profound shock” to the economy, triggering a 14 per cent decline in modified domestic demand, a key measure of the performance of the domestic economy.

1 week ago | irishtimes.com | Jack Horgan-Jones

An increased focus on spaces for adolescents is expected in an upcoming national play and recreation policy being developed by the Government. With a growing population of teens and adolescents in the State, officials in the Department of Children are working on the strategy, which will update the current programme that is over 20 years old.