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File Photo: Irish Taoiseach (Prime Minister) Simon Harris speaks to reporters after meeting with U.S. President Joe Biden at the White House in Washington, U.S., October 9, 2024.
Ireland preps for an election sprint
Thankfully, not every election campaign lasts for two years. On Tuesday, Irish Prime Minister Simon Harris said he will call aparliamentary election later this week, and the vote will likely be held on or about Nov. 29.
The timing comes as no surprise. Last month, Harris’ government gave voters a package of tax cuts and new spending that totals more than 10 billion euros, andFine Gael, his center-right party, is now polling in first place. It’s also important thatFianna Fail, his coalition partner, is now polling in second place.
When Irish voters have gone to the polls in recent years, the popularity of Sinn Fein, Ireland’s main opposition and a nationalist party with historic ties to the Irish Republican Army, a terrorist group, has been the focus of poll and election analysis. For now,Sinn Fein is polling in third place, but election campaigns can quickly shake up the political dynamic. In recent years, Sinn Fein’s leadership has played down the issue of reunification with Northern Ireland, part of the United Kingdom, to focus its message instead on economic and healthcare issues.
A laptop keyboard and Google logo displayed on a phone screen are seen in this illustration photo taken in Krakow, Poland on September 9, 2024.
Ireland sniffs around Google’s AI models
Ireland’s data privacy authority has opened an inquiry into Google’s artificial intelligence practices. The country’s Data Protection Commission has become an important data watchdog in the European Union as many of the world’s top tech companies have set up their European operations in Ireland. The DPC is specifically investigating whether Google’s Pathways Language Model 2, or PaLM 2, protected user privacy in accordance with Europe’s General Data Protection Regulation.
PaLM 2 is a foundational model developed by Google AI that’s largely been succeeded by its Gemini model, which launched in December 2023.
Under the GDPR, companies are required to carry out “data protection impact assessments” any time they develop a project that could be considered “high-risk” to citizens’ personal information. The Irish data regulator will look into whether Google improperly skipped this step. GDPR violations are no joke: If found liable, Google could be forced to cough up 4% of their global annual revenue. Google told reporters that it takes its obligations under GDPR seriously and will work with the DPC to answer their questions.
UK Prime Minister Sunak's push for early election will hardly boost his chances
Carl Bildt, former prime minister of Sweden and co-chair of the European Council on Foreign Relations, shares his perspective on European politics from Halmstad, Sweden.
Does the decision by Norway, Ireland, and Spain to recognize Palestine as an independent state further increase the isolation of Israel?
Not necessarily, but it does further reinforce the determination that is there throughout the international community, I would say, that it's only a two-state solution that over time, can bring peace and stability to the troubled region of the Middle East. In that sense, of course, Prime Minister Netanyahu and his resistance to move towards a two-state solution is increasingly isolated in the global community. And this particular decision is a further sign of that.
Does the decision by the UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, to call an early election increases his possibility to retain his position at Downing Street?
Hardly likely, I would say. There are different theories why he decided to do the gamble. And though, it’s early for an election, it's not quite certain it would have been better to, it could have been equally bad to wait. So, he probably said, “Let's just get over with it.” But the Conservatives are 20% behind in opinion polls. It might not be that bad when it comes to the election. Election campaigns tend to have the effect of changing these particular figures, slightly. But the likelihood of, him still being prime minister of the United Kingdom by the end of July, that is, I have to say, very slim.
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Newly elected Prime Minister Simon Harris leaves the Dail, in Dublin, following the vote by Irish parliamentarians to elect him, making him the youngest taoiseach in Ireland's history.
Who is Ireland’s new prime minister, Simon Harris?
The Emerald Isle has a new leader. Ireland’s parliament on Tuesday elected Simon Harris as the country’s next taoiseach (prime minister) after Leo Varadkar unexpectedly announced his resignation last month.
Harris, 37, is Ireland’s youngest-ever taoiseach. He ran unopposed to replace Varadkar as leader of the center-right Fine Gael Party, which is in a coalition government with Fianna Fáil and the Green Party. Harris served as higher education minister in Varadkar’s government. He was also Ireland’s health minister when it voted to legalize abortion — a move he strongly supported — and at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, which boosted his national profile.
What’s on his agenda? Harris faces challenges ranging from a housing crisis to beleaguered health services. He pledged to prioritize housing in a speech on Tuesday.
“Today, I recommit to moving mountains to help build more homes,” Harris said, vowing to “build a new social contract.”
An election looms. The clock is ticking for Harris, given that a general election must be held by March 2025. “Time is short, and there is lots to do,” Harris said Tuesday.
His coalition also faces a challenge from the nationalist, left-wing Sinn Fein Party.
Mary Lou McDonald, Sinn Fein’s leader, portrayed Harris as a continuation of the status quo. “Here we go again — pass the parcel with the keys to the taoiseach’s office one more time,” she said.
A recent opinion poll showed Sinn Fein leading Fine Gael, 26% to 21%. Both parties were down a point from the previous poll, which suggests Harris has his work cut out for him.
Taoiseach Leo Varadkar leaves after speaking to the media at Government Buildings in Dublin, he has announced he is to step down as Taoiseach and as leader of his party, Fine Gael. Picture date: Wednesday March 20, 2024.
Irish PM steps down
Leo Varadkar announced Wednesday that he will step down as Ireland’s Taoiseach, aka prime minister, after leading coalition governments twice – for five of the past seven years. When he came to power in 2017, he was Ireland’s youngest-ever and first openly gay Taoiseach, and the country’s first leader from an Indian background.
Echoing similar sentiments to other young leaders who have stepped down, likeSanna Marin andJacinda Ardern, the former physician cited both personal and political reasons for leaving office.
“One part of leadership is knowing when the time has come to pass on the baton to somebody else,” Varadkar said. “Politicians are human beings, and we have our limitations.”
During his political career, Varadkar pioneered some progressive policies in one of the most socially conservative countries in Europe. As minister of health, he advocated for the legalization of same-sex marriage ahead of the successful 2015 referendum, and while he was PM, Ireland repealed a strict abortion ban in 2018.
But recently, Varadkar’s government suffered an embarrassing defeat in two referendums aimed at modernizing the constitution’s definition of a family and the role of women at home. The largest referendum defeat in the country’s history is being blamed on lackluster, confusing messaging from Varadkar’s “yes” campaign and an energized coalition of dissatisfied “no” voters from across the political spectrum.
Varadkar’s resignation – which will not trigger a general election – will take place once his party chooses his replacement. But a general election must be held before March 2025, and his governing coalition is expected to suffer heavy losses against the nationalist Sinn Fein party.
For Varadkar, saying (a not-so-Irish) goodbye may be easier than facing the public once again.
New Delhi, Mar 10 (ANI): Prime Minister Narendra Modi addresses the launch of Mahtari Vandan Yojana in Chhattisgarh via video conferencing, on Sunday.
Hard Numbers: India & EFTA sign trade deal, Oppenheimer's Oscars, Biden's big haul, Portuguese polls, Irish vote down constitutional change, New hope for Libya
100 billion: India has signed a trade agreement with the four members of the European Free Trade Association — Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, and Switzerland — aimed at integrating supply chains and opening new opportunities for trade and investment. The deal includes a commitment to invest a whopping $100 billion in India over the next 15 years to create 1 million jobs.
7: The big winner at the Oscars on Sunday was "Oppenheimer," director Christopher Nolan's historic drama about the invention of nuclear weapons, which took home seven prizes, including Best Film. The documentary "20 Days in Mariupol" also won Ukraine its first Oscar.
10 million: The Biden campaign says it raised over $10 million in the 24 hours following the State of the Union, which served as a de facto campaign event. It’s the campaign’s largest one-day haul yet. With a long eight-month campaign ahead, the Biden team has been stockpiling a war chest as Trump fought contested primaries (not to mention legal battles).
79: The Portuguese center-right Democratic Alliance took 79 seats in Sunday's elections, ousting the incumbent socialist party but falling well short of the 115 seats it would need for a majority government. The party's leader, however, swore he would not work with the far-right Chega party, which surged in the polls, to establish a majority.
73.93: On Friday, Irish voters rejected proposed constitutional changes concerning the concept of family and care in a nationwide referendum. The first proposal would have recognized “family” as a couple without regard to their sex, while the second aimed to strip reference to the role of women in the home. Well over half, some 67.7% of Irish voters, opposed the first, while 73.93% said no to the second.
3: Progress in Libya’s long conflict may soon be at hand: On Sunday, three leaders agreed on the need to form a new unified government to supervise the country’s long-delayed elections. Elections were due in December 2021, but fell apart owing to disputes over who was eligible to run.Feminist protestors holding signs on International Women's Day.
On International Women’s Day, Ireland amends sexism in its constitution
Just in time for International Women’s Day, the Republic of Ireland will vote today on whether to change a clause in its constitution that says "the State shall ... endeavor to ensure that mothers shall not be obliged by economic necessity to engage in labor to the neglect of their duties in the home."
In addition to cutting the antiquated language, the country is considering replacing it with a clause about supporting caregivers of any gender and expanding the definition of family to include unmarried couples and single parents.
Supporters say the proposition is the next step for the traditionally Catholic country after it became the first in the world to vote for same-sex marriage in 2015 and overturned its constitutional ban on abortion in 2018.
Critics argue that a constitutional amendment is no substitute for structural changes needed to value unpaid care work, tackle gender inequality in the labor market, and drive deep societal shifts that lead to more male participation in caregiving and housework.
The referendum is expected to pass, but this is not the first time the holiday has coincided with a groundbreaking moment in a country’s history.
International Women’s Day originated in New York City in 1909, when the socialist and suffragist women’s movements met for a joint demonstration. The struggle of working-class women to form trade unions and the upper-class fight for women’s franchises had rarely intersected before. The movement spread to Europe, where it continued to be celebrated through World War I, even as other social movements fizzled.
The movement sparked the Russian Revolution. On March 8, 1917, Russian feminist Alexandra Kollontai brought the holiday to Czarist Russia by calling for a massive demonstration over peace and bread shortages. The protests spread from factory to factory until they sparked the Russian Revolution and led to the abdication of Czar Nicholas II.
Vladimir Lenin declared that International Women’s Day would forever be celebrated on March 8. The start of the Cold War confined it to Communist countries, and the West largely denounced it until the United Nations recognized it as International Women’s Day in 1975.
First Minister Michelle O'Neill during an interview with PA Media, on the day Ms O’Neill became Northern Ireland's first nationalist First Minister. Saturday February 3, 2024
Northern Ireland names first Sinn Fein leader
After two long years, Northern Ireland once again has a functioning government – and in a historic move, it has named Michelle O’Neill as the first-ever First Minister from Sinn Fein. The party, which served as the political wing of the Irish Republican Army, won a majority of seats in the 2022 election.
The country’s unique “Good Friday Agreement” necessitates that unionists and nationalists share power, but that cooperation collapsed in 2022 over a dispute about post-Brexit trade rules with the EU. O’Neill will share power with Deputy Minister Emma Little-Pengelly, from the Democratic Unionist Party, which had dominated Northern Ireland’s politics for decades.
While the 47-year-old O’Neill favors the unity of the two Irelands, she downplayed that in the days leading to her appointment and pledged to continue “the work of reconciliation between all our people.” O’Neill’s father was imprisoned for IRA membership before transitioning to politics, but O’Neill herself is not an anti-monarchist, notably attending both Queen Elizabeth II’s funeral and the coronation of King Charles III last year.
Her government also has more pressing concerns: health care and cost-of-living issues. Nevertheless, O’Neill’s appointment gives hope to those who would like to one day see the two Irelands united.