Mark Paul

Dublin

London Correspondent at Irish Times

London Correspondent of The Irish Times. No longer a blue thick. I have more questions than answers. Let’s all speak freely. I was never in Saved By The Bell.

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Articles

‘Scunnered’ Scottish voters go to the polls in crucial byelection

2 days ago | irishtimes.com | Mark Paul

When Scottish broadcaster STV recently hit the streets of Hamilton to gauge the mood of voters in advance of Thursday’s crucial byelection, its political editor Colin Mackay returned with a pithy one-word verdict. Locals, he said, were “scunnered” with politics.
‘Simply not good enough’: MPs concerned by ‘intolerable risks’ at Sellafield site

3 days ago | irishtimes.com | Mark Paul

“Intolerable risks” at the most hazardous parts of the Sellafield nuclear site are being exacerbated by poor performance, substandard equipment and staff shortages that make the facility even more dangerous, according to a report by MPs in Westminster.
Mother and son risk death in solidarity with each other

4 days ago | irishtimes.com | Mark Paul

Last week was sunny but by Tuesday morning, the threat of rain had returned with a spitting blustery wind and grey clouds. The colour had run from the London sky, and also from the face of Sanaa Seif. She stood on the street near Westminster Bridge and contemplated the potential death of her mother in St Thomas’s hospital behind us.
Britain to ‘get ready for war’ as review calls for defence overhaul

4 days ago | irishtimes.com | Mark Paul

Britain plans a new fleet of attack submarines, a £15 billion overhaul of its nuclear weaponry and a “home guard” volunteer force to protect infrastructure such as airports, as UK prime minister Keir Starmer promised to get his nation ready for war. The promise came as the British government on Monday published a strategic defence review (SDR) led by former Nato chief George Robertson.
UK-Israel relations plunge as calls grow in Britain to recognise Palestine

2 weeks ago | irishtimes.com | Mark Paul

The new reality of Britain’s more combative, strained relationship with Israel began at 5.52pm on Monday, when a Downing Street official pressed send on a statement by UK prime minister Keir Starmer. Co-signed with prime minister Mark Carney of Canada and France’s president, Emmanuel Macron, the missive hinted at sanctions against Israel if it didn’t unblock aid to Gaza and cease bombing. It directly threatened sanctions over the building of illegal Jewish settlements in the West Bank.
Alleged display of Hizbullah ensign at Kneecap gig may prove costly for rapper

2 weeks ago | irishtimes.com | Mark Paul

The charging of Kneecap rapper Liam Óg Ó hAnnaidh (27) with a terrorism offence by British authorities specifically relates to the alleged display of a flag associated with Lebanese armed group Hizbullah last November at one of the band’s gigs in Kentish Town, north London. Under British law, it is an offence to show public support for proscribed groups named on a specific list.
‘I soon regretted not putting on pants’: Unwelcome early-morning callers arrived at my door, demanding £1,000

2 weeks ago | irishtimes.com | Mark Paul

Bang, bang, bang. Ding dong. Ding dong. Somebody was at our front door, knocking insistently and ringing the bell. Upstairs in bed, I turned blearily to check the time. It was 6am on a Saturday. This had better be good, I thought. But I knew it wouldn’t be. I am not a morning person. My wife catapulted out of bed and answered the door as I hovered in semi-consciousness. In my haze, I became vaguely aware of a strange man’s voice remonstrating with her. That got me up.
‘We need him here with us’: 69-year-old woman on hunger strike in Britain over son imprisoned in Egypt

2 weeks ago | irishtimes.com | Mark Paul

Looking small and thin, and sounding weak yet utterly resolute, British-born Egyptian academic and human rights activist Laila Soueif leant on a railing at the entrance to Downing Street on Tuesday in the full glare of London’s May sunshine. Ms Soueif (69) has been protesting for months against the detention of her son Alaa Abd El-Fattah by the Egyptian authorities.
All smiles and bonhomie as Keir and Ursula clinch deal

2 weeks ago | irishtimes.com | Mark Paul

With three words, European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen captured the new mood of EU bonhomie with the British government. “My dear Keir,” she said softly, as she turned to smile at the UK’s prime minister Keir Starmer during a press conference in Lancaster House in London, where both sides on Monday effectively renegotiated Britain’s post-Brexit trading relationship with the European Union. If it sounded a bit familiar, that’s because it was.
Defence pact likely to be centrepiece of EU-UK ‘reset’ summit in London

3 weeks ago | irishtimes.com | Mark Paul

It was believed in Westminster that Monday’s top-level summit in London between the UK and the European Union would be held at Lancaster House, a mansion beside Green Park that is often used by Britain’s Foreign Office to host grand diplomatic get-togethers. Britain’s prime minister Keir Starmer wanted the meeting to bring a “reset” in relations with the EU. What better place to cement a reset than the gilded rooms of a stately mansion?