The Fianna Fáil leader told JOE that his party has picked up resentment towards immigrants in parts of the country where people are on long housing lists. Mr Martin declined to commit to reforming or replacing the existing Direct Provision system if his party leads the next government. The Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission has […]

6 years ago

There was no need to adjust your televisions. The preened and image conscious were leading each other on an interminable dance, toying with the idea of pairing up under the thin veneer of being mean to each other. And over on Virgin Media Two, Love Island was on. As if the timing of this election […]

6 years ago

The Fine Gael TD claimed that it wasn’t known who the Lord Mayor would be when he sent the letter, but it had been widely reported on the same day that Paul McAuliffe was due to take over the role. Mr Rock, who was elected TD for Dublin North West in 2016, is expected to […]

6 years ago

Mary Lou McDonald, the party leader, said that Mr Holohan’s comments about underage girls were upsetting and “beyond offensive.” It emerged this week that Mr Holohan had suggested on an episode of his No Shame podcast that Mr Varadkar’s blood ran to India, and that the person elected Taoiseach should be a family man. He subsequently […]

6 years ago

Taoiseach Leo Varadkar said there is a “better system” for accommodating refugees that the government must move towards. Varadkar also said that the government must update hate speech law, but it will be difficult to balance a new law against freedom of speech. Earlier this month, a report by the Oireachtas Justice Committee said that […]

6 years ago

Who are the real Irish patriots? Tricolour emojis and pictures of the proclamation can feel like sinister emblems when we see them online. Trolls have stolen the symbols of Irish independence and made them the logos of their audacious racist campaigns to make Ireland as white and as unwelcoming as possible.  When the state appeared […]

6 years ago

Those supporting people in Direct Provision said the case shows private accommodation is not suitable for people looking for international protection. Four families in Direct Provision do not have cots for their babies to sleep in, because they’re staying in a hotel. Many of Ireland’s Direct Provision centres, where those seeking asylum stay while their […]

6 years ago

The women won it.  As the results of the referendum on the Eighth Amendment rolled in, campaigners and politicians and journalists all praised the women; “brave” women and “bereaved” women who “shared” their stories. Even in countries where abortion isn’t a crime, there is still a stigma around talking about terminating a pregnancy. In Ireland, […]

6 years ago

The man, who is an alleged member of a violent white supremacist group, flew back to the US from Ireland on Wednesday. Gardaí have confirmed that an alleged neo-nazi spent almost a week in Ireland after he was refused entry into Germany. Last week, German media reported that a man known as Kyle M had […]

6 years ago

Over 50 politicians have been targeted by leaflets which claim they are backing sex education reforms which would be welcomed by paedophiles. It comes after JOE reported that a major misinformation campaign has been whipping up opposition to sex education reforms by telling parents that their four-year-old children will be taught how to masturbate. The National Council […]

6 years ago

Transgender health activists said that the “devastating” breach of trust left some people on the wrong waiting list for up to three years. The National Gender Service, which runs transgender healthcare for the HSE, has told campaigners that it misplaced referrals for 109 people. It means that some people who believed they were on a […]

6 years ago

A major misinformation campaign has been whipping up opposition to sex education reforms by telling parents that their four-year-old children will be taught how to masturbate.  JOE understands that the campaign, which started in Donegal, has led to hundreds of parents sending letters to the Department of Education. In some cases, teachers have sent letters […]

6 years ago

Children across Ireland could be diagnosed with autism by psychologists who are not properly qualified, JOE can reveal. Internal health service documents show that the HSE commissioned a psychologist to assess children, despite the fact she had previously been turned down for another HSE job because she did not have “clinical” qualifications.  Psychology and disability […]

6 years ago

The new policy could mean more gender neutral bathrooms in hospitals and schools. The government is being asked to consider more gender-neutral bathrooms in public buildings, as part of a new strategy to improve the lives of LGBTI people in Ireland. JOE understands that a new report on a national LGBTI strategy will call on […]

6 years ago

The DUP has claimed that the Northern Irish assembly – which has not functioned for two and a half years – could be “diminished” by a citizens’ assembly. The British Irish Parliamentary Assembly – which includes politicians from the UK, Irish, Northern Irish, Scottish and Welsh governments – set up a review of abortion policy […]

6 years ago

The woman had spent the last six years waiting to go on trial for helping her daughter access an illegal abortion. On Wednesday morning, Belfast Crown Court formally dropped charges against the woman one month before she was due to go on trial. Up until this week, abortion was banned in almost all cases in […]

6 years ago

“Tiocfaidh ár bra!”  Sha Gillespie, the queer activist, cried out in joy in Derry’s Guildhall Square. The space outside the landmark building in the Northern Irish city has hosted its fair share of campaigns over the years – some of them hard won, many of them painfully lost.  On Monday night, the city’s walls were […]

6 years ago

Women and children who are forced to flee from abusive homes aren’t counted in official homelessness statistics, and there are fears that the rental and housing crisis is forcing them to return to their abusers. Tusla, the child and family agency, has not published figures on how many times domestic abuse refuges in Ireland are […]

7 years ago

Twitter has also claimed that its users can tackle hate speech on the social network by publicly stating that they disagree with it.  The social network told Irish politicians that “counterspeech” created solidarity for people suffering online abuse, while also claiming that not banning abusive trolls gave Twitter a chance to “educate” them.   The internet […]

7 years ago

The finance minister said journalism that makes people uncomfortable is “essential” and there should be “strong diversity” in Irish broadcasting. Mr Donohoe was speaking exclusively to Dion Fanning for a new episode of Ireland Unfiltered. This week, a new subscription news website called The Currency was launched by Ian Kehoe and Tom Lyons – the […]

7 years ago

The Garda Commissioner told the government that anti-abortion demonstrations outside hospitals and GP clinics have been “peaceful” so far. Since abortion became legal in Ireland, anti-abortion activists have held a number of demonstrations outside maternity hospitals and GP clinics. It is understood that anti-abortion activists standing outside an Irish Family Planning clinic have handed women […]

7 years ago

The state’s restrictive licensing laws could also be relaxed in an attempt to save Ireland’s nightlife. Music venues in Ireland could be protected by a new law designed to stop the closure of cultural venues in Dublin.  Josepha Madigan, the culture minister, told JOE that she wants to copy a UK “agent of change” law, […]

7 years ago

More surgical procedures for transgender people could be available in Ireland if the number of people being referred to the national gender clinic increases. The number of trans people in Ireland using online fundraisers to pay for private healthcare almost doubled within the space of a year, as waiting lists for public gender healthcare continue […]

7 years ago

JOE can reveal that the government repeatedly ignored warnings about how it was planning to spend much needed rape crisis funds. Rape crisis centres which are already struggling to meet demand could be left without much needed resources after the government decided to share funding between all 16 centres, instead of focusing on the ones […]

7 years ago

The Irish Cancer Society has also called for flavoured vapes to be banned, to protect children from the potential harm of e-cigarettes.  The charity raised concerns that politicians are repeating arguments from the tobacco industry, after being lobbied by vape business groups which include major cigarette companies. It comes as six people are reported to […]

7 years ago

At the start, Sean had no interest in making art. “I just wanted something to do,” he says. Now, he draws all the time. Sean has a soft voice but a strong Dublin accent. He’s broad and big. He comes across as very conscious of his manners. He makes pencil portraits in grey and white, […]

7 years ago

Cameras were poised, journalists were waiting and the traffic in Dublin city centre was in shite. Most of Merrion Street was closed off in anticipation of the Prime Minister’s arrival, causing the kind of chaos that a Boris Johnson visit deserves. A Union Jack was fluttering opposite the tricolour above Irish government buildings. Perhaps a […]

7 years ago

Northern Irish political parties must “get on board” if they want to help shape abortion law reform, the secretary of state has said.  The exclusive comments come as the UK government vowed to repeal a 19th century law which criminalises abortion in Northern Ireland, and temporarily ban the arrest or prosecution of any woman accessing […]

7 years ago

Deeds or words? Twenty years since the state first apologised to victims of child sex abuse and a decade after the Ryan Report revealed the “horror and terror” endured by those in Ireland’s religious institutions, how can we measure how the state responded to those who suffered? This month, a fund  for survivors of abuse […]

7 years ago

A fund for institutional abuse survivors is facing the “catastrophic” impact of running out of money because the religious order still owes it over €6 million.  JOE can reveal that over 1,000 abuse survivors, who have already been waiting over a year for payments, can’t be paid by the fund until the Congregation of the […]

7 years ago

Politicians are worried about the “unintended consequences” of a law that punishes sex workers who live together. Fianna Fáil has called for an anti-prostitution law to be reviewed, because of the consequences it has on sex workers who live together. The main opposition party has suggested that it would be open to considering decriminalising sex […]

7 years ago

The HSE is worried about “disingenuous” anti-abortion crisis pregnancy agencies which are meeting women in hotels or car parks.  Google is failing to warn women in Ireland about anti-abortion “crisis pregnancy agencies” which are targeting them online.  An investigation by JOE has found that the search engine, which makes money from anti-abortion groups who want […]

7 years ago

It is a truth universally acknowledged that the best version of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory is the 1971 film, and that’s because of Gene Wilder. He plays Willy Wonka as both an eccentric confectionary enthusiast, but also a pretty significant threat to small children. Very entertaining to watch, but also kind of chilling. Watching […]

7 years ago

Watching Irish political history unfold is pretty boring. Last November, a bill to legalise abortion for the first time in the history of the state was inching its way through the Oireachtas at a painfully slow pace. Journalists and politicians spent endless hours in the stale air and harsh lighting of the committee rooms which […]

7 years ago