Fine Gael has strengthened its position in the polls over the last few months. At 29% it polls about 3% higher than in July of this year. Independents and small parties went down, however, from 27% to 22% over the same period of time. These are the most important findings from the new Irish Polling…
Published by Elaine Byrne 13 November 2015 The OECD published a preliminary draft of its Review of Budget Oversight by Parliament: Ireland this week. The report can be accessed here. Key points: Budget oversight by the Irish parliamentary chambers is under-developed by international standards. 17 recommendations which include – Ex ante parliamentary input to medium-term fiscal…
A free event to be held at UCD Newman House, November 13, 2015, 9.30am-1.00pm To register, see here Ireland’s Convention on the Constitution, which met from late 2012 to early 2014, was a world first both in allowing ordinary citizens a place in discussions about the future of our Constitution and also due to its role in the…
Posted on behalf of Dr Emmanuelle Schon-Quinlivan Since 2009, many articles and books have been written on the causes to the Eurozone crisis, the potential solutions as well as their consequences for European economic integration. Most of the literature has taken a liberal intergovernmentalist approach or even ‘new intergovermentalist’ stance which focuses on the prevalence…
About five months out from the expected date of the general elections, Fine Gael continues to lead in the opinion polls with around 26% support. While the party is down about 10% compared to the last general elections, its competitors are fragmented and therefore Enda Kenny’s party manages to continue its lead. This is estimated…
The annual conference of the Political Studies Association of Ireland will take place this weekend (16-18 October) in the Metropole Hotel in Cork. Information on conference registration is available at http://www.ucc.ie/en/government/psai/ Please see below for more information on the roundtables, keynotes and parallel sessions over the weekend. For more information, please contact Dr Theresa Reidy…
Amid the current sometimes fevered speculation over the date of the election to the 32nd Dáil, one constant refrain is that the timing of the election is the prerogative of the Taoiseach. Members of Fine Gael, while they might express a personal preference, are punctilious in adding that ‘of course’ it is entirely up to…
Electoral Management Policies and Priorities On 16 October 2015, there will be a half-day workshop looking at electoral management practices in Ireland and abroad. The programme includes election specialists working on electoral management bodies, voter registration and the regulation of political parties. The workshop is taking place in the Metropole Hotel in Cork and everyone is…
Posted on behalf of Dr Clodagh Harris (UCC) The PSAI specialist group on teaching and learning in politics is holding an event in the NUI offices, 49 Merrion Square on Friday September 18th 2015. To register for the event, please contact Stefanie Wojtek at s.wojtek@ucc.ie before 13:00 September 17th. The event is co-funded by the PSAI and…
I’m currently reading José Saramago’s Seeing (a gift from a former student), which tells the story of how panic sets in among a city’s political classes after the vast bulk of the citizens cast a blank ballot in an election. It’s a great read, though I have to admit I thought the storyline a bit…
Irish Politics Forum 