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Pat Rabbitte

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Articles by Pat Rabbitte

Pat Rabbitte: Donohoe’s undeclared donation is ‘only a cat on the field of play’ compared to Ireland’s corrupt past

Those seeking to exaggerate the importance of an undeclared campaign donation of around €1,000 to Paschal Donohoe seem to have no awareness of how far we have come on issues of ethics and probity

Pat Rabbitte: Varadkar’s propensity for candour is a double-edged sword

Less may be more for the Taoiseach, who might be better served by reining in his penchant for publicity and focusing instead on the cost of living and housing crisis in the country

Pat Rabbitte: Is Micheál Martin opening the door a little to the unthinkable?

Sinn Féin is likely to be the largest party in the next Dáil, but will need a second party with which to share government

Pat Rabbitte: Varadkar will be playing against the wind in the second half

A government that fails to shelter its people or keep the lights on will not be insulated when the Fine Gael leader replaces Micheál Martin as taoiseach in December

Pat Rabbitte: Critics of how Martin has played Fianna Fáil’s hand lack their own trump card

The rumblings over the the party leader’s tenure as Taoiseach rise and fall, stimulated by the latest opinion polls or by-election result. But right now, there is neither an alternative leader nor policy in public view

Pat Rabbitte: Tory forces persist in peddling their delusions as Britain burns

The reckless pursuit of lies, laziness and political vandalism will certainly continue if Liz Truss wins the leadership battle

Putin: In depth study gets to the heart of what motivates Russia’s ruthless president

Philip Short’s impressive biography of the Russian leader examines Putin from a Russian rather than western perspective and helps to explain, if not condone, his motives and actions

Pat Rabbitte: Questions for the utilities commission as energy crisis was waiting to happen

Even before the Ukraine invasion, it was clear to most that an energy squeeze was on the way. So why was nothing done about it?

Northern Ireland

Pat Rabbitte: NI result is a historic and symbolic shift, but signifies little real change

The election victory of Michelle O’Neill and Sinn Féin was a momentous one, but the centre ground in the North remains a prisoner of polarised politics

Pat Rabbitte: Holohan debacle shows we need to look again at 100-year-old act

The Ministers and Secretaries Act of 1924, which governs the relationship between ministers and heads of departments, is at the root of the current controversy about the CMO’s appointment to Trinity

Pat Rabbitte: Will Bacik’s campaigning record be enough to change the fortunes of battered Labour?

Labour bears the brunt of blame for a myriad of ills, but like its expected new leader, the party has been behind some of this country’s most important moves towards social and economic justice

Pat Rabbitte: For FF, FG and Greens, the real challenge of governing begins

With the pandemic emergency receding, the government parties have three years to show what they can do with problems such as the housing crisis

Pat Rabbitte: It’s not ‘favouring’ austerity if you have no choice

Ireland in 2011 had lost its financial sovereignty and going against the troika would have meant financial ruin. The then government’s options were to make it work, or make it worse

Pat Rabbitte: Martin has shown resilience in this crisis without a roadmap

Micheál Martin has endured a true annus horribilis, but he has held firm through the rapidly shifting, unpredictable circumstances of his time in office

Pat Rabbitte: Keeping the coalition onside is the acid test for the Green leader

Our post-carbon future depends on whether Eamon Ryan can bring his government partners with him when various interest groups oppose implementation of the climate action plan

Pat Rabbitte: Budget Day now is but a pale reflection of budgets past

The Minister for Finance must have been delighted to hear that the unspent sums are €6 billion more than anticipated – so why aren’t we all dancing in the streets at the news?

Pat Rabbitte: Politics by soundbite is no way to resolve issues or govern a country

Too often it seems politicians and the media are being dictated to by the preoccupations of social media and minor missteps are being elevated to the level of major crises

Pat Rabbitte: August wobble betrays coalition’s weak foundations

The weary government was just beginning to gain some equilibrium when the Zappone controversy knocked it for six. Can such a mismatched alliance survive the rough-and-tumble that inevitably lies ahead?

Pat Rabbitte: There is no clear alternative to Martin in FF’s charisma-free line-up

What do the rebels have to offer? A modern rebuild of the party that could see it as junior partner in a Sinn Féin-led government?

Pat Rabitte: If Leo Varadkar is right and the economy takes off ‘like a rocket’ we are at risk of an energy crisis

We need to mitigate the climate crisis but that cannot mean leaving Ireland without a secure source of energy