The Last Post Matt Cooper: Leo the Lip seems to think representing Ireland abroad is a joking matterMaking an ill-advised Clinton quip and ducking out of an important lunch with big multinational American investors in Ireland does not become an Taoiseach
The Last Post Matt Cooper: Forget ‘Landlord Leo’, the real issue is the failure to deliver housingUnless something changes, we will be stuck with under-supply, unaffordability and homelessness as long as this government lasts
The Last Post Matt Cooper: Denis O’Brien finally folds ’em after calling his creditors’ bluff for long enoughThe Digicel boss surrendered a majority of the ownership of his Caribbean mobile phone operation, but he’s still enormously wealthy with a raft of assets in Ireland and abroad
The Last Post Matt Cooper: DJ Carey debt deal may not be as favourable as it would first appearThe law recognises that where the debtor does not have the means to repay the debt, the amount can be written down, otherwise do we want to bring back 19th-century-style debtor prisons?
The Last Post Matt Cooper: Our relationship with an increasingly dominant China demands scrutinyThe Minister for the Environment’s upcoming state visit to China – a country that has been expanding its influence globally, amid growing security concerns in the West – provides an opportunity for some much-needed public discussions
The Last Post Matt Cooper: Ahern versus Adams 2025 – potentially the presidential contest of the centuryIn an imaginable scenario where the two political beasts face off, both would have a great deal of baggage to overcome – but how much would a modern electorate really care?
The Last Post Matt Cooper: Chelsea’s new owners playing a risky game in stockpiling unproven talentThe club’s deep-pocketed owners see the enormous outlay on new players as capital investment, but if Chelsea fail to qualify for next season’s Champions League, then players may well have to be sold to recover the cost
The Last Post Matt Cooper: Why left-wing critics are wrong to target Coillte’s clever forestry dealOpponents may be concerned more with private farmers being denied an opportunity than with landgrabbing
The Last Post Matt Cooper: Free GP care proposal raises issues of practicality over costThe price of extending free doctor visits to all citizens is estimated at €880 million a year, but there are bigger questions around GP shortages, pay rates and financial responsibility
The Last Post Matt Cooper: Prince Harry boosts his coffers while taking no prisoners among press and peersIt’s hard to blame Harry for hitting back against the monarchy and the media that made a sport out of his life for entertainment and profit
The Last Post Matt Cooper: Refugees and immigrants need more than our good intentionsWe need to talk about how we’re welcoming refugees and immigrants – and whether we need to put temporary limits on that welcome
The Last Post High impact: can rugby tough it out against an unforgiving future?Even if all our dreams of a tilt at the World Cup and Champions Cup come true this year, rugby is still a sport facing overwhelming challenges
The Last Post Matt Cooper: Infantino’s accession proves the maxim ‘be careful what you wish for’The football world wanted Sepp Blatter out, but he has been replaced by an even more powerful autocrat with a speciality in gaslighting
The Last Post Matt Cooper: Varadkar video shows the fine line between invasion of privacy and the public interestMost of the traditional media didn’t print what was widely available on social media, but were they complicit in a conspiracy of silence, protecting Varadkar from public scrutiny, or were they showing the necessary discretion?
The Last Post Matt Cooper: New contract means Ryanair’s ‘O’Leary era’ is still in mid-flightIt’s hard to imagine the Irish airline without its firebrand chief executive – but that won’t be necessary for a while, as his newly inked contract extends until 2028
Comment Matt Cooper: Quinn Country reveals that bankruptcy has not stripped the ex-billionaire of his egoSeán Quinn’s behaviour – tears and all – in the documentary on RTÉ was evidence of his biggest asset and worst liability
The Last Post Matt Cooper: Fifa’s dirty laundry includes a load of blatant World Cup greenwashingThe world football organiser claims the 2022 World Cup in Qatar is ‘a fully carbon-neutral event’, but there are arguments that the tournament may contribute up to 10 million tonnes of carbon emissions
The Last Post Matt Cooper: Ronaldo spat raises questions over who has the bigger brand – superclubs or superstarsThe Portuguese superstar is engaged in a war with Manchester United after an interview in which he claimed the club care more about marketing than sport. But the controversy suggests MUFC is no longer even at the top level of business management
The Last Post Matt Cooper: Liverpool FC transfer rumours raise questions about club’s futureThe football club was recently valued at £3.6 billion, but if FSG, its American owner, sells up, what will it mean for the team beloved of so many Irish fans?
The Last Post Matt Cooper: Bono’s paradoxical life between the material and immaterial worlds‘An artist is not a sacred soul because they make art,’ writes the U2 lead singer in an engaging memoir that is far more than the sum of its parts
