Is Ireland's peacekeeping legacy at risk?

Derek Mooney chats with Prof Roger Mac Ginty (Durham University), a key contributor to the 2023 Consultative Forum on International Security Policy, to unpack Irish neutrality, the future of UN peacekeeping, and the government's push to scrap the triple lock.

They dig into the OSCE's untapped potential, a "weak" UN Secretary-General, Europe's abdication on Ukraine, and why cross-party consensus on defence matters more than ever. A sharp, honest look at Ireland's place in a fracturing world order.

In this episode I look at some of the paradoxes of Irish politics... the government is hugely unpopular (on a par with Trump in the US) but the opposition cannot capitalise on it.

Meanwhile Taoiseach Micheál martin attempts to deflect from his own vulnerabilities by going to war with his own backbenchers in a way that just further highlights those vulnerabilities... !

In this episode I set out the 7 core leadership lessons for Irish political parties from Andy Burnham's ascent to No 10:

1. Don’t make it personal

2. Timing matters – no delays

3. Prepare properly

4. Take risks

5. Keep control of the message

6. Day one counts

7. Don’t fear blood

This is my Summer 2026 holiday political reading list... these are the 8 books I recommend to take away with you to read while on your summer holidays. All eight are political and should be of interest to any Irish politico... whatever their political hue. This podcast also looks at the books that almost made the list... and the one that most definitely didn't. You can read the original blogpost via my website: www.derekmooney.ie

New episode out now: Derek look at Sinn Féin’s recent unity bill, the Government’s decision to oppose it, and what that says about the real politics of constitutional change, Shared Island, and the principle of consent.

What does enduring or durable consent mean? And should we be worried by it?

#IrishPolitics #GoodFridayAgreement #SharedIsland #Unity

With the government planning abolition, Derek answers 7 critical questions:

• Why it's not sovereignty loss,
• Why reform, not abolition is sensible
• How the Fianna Fáil leader shifted from 2020's "fully maintain" pledge to backing abolition
• What public support means,
• Why defence mustn't be politicised
• Value of military neutrality, and
• Brutal reality that the Defence Forces is at less than 70% of its 11,500 target strength.

Martin, Harris, McEntee and Byrne cannot Triple Lock their way out of their massive capability gap

In this episode I look at events and developments over the last few weeks, since the two bye-elections and consider the lesson for the leadership of Fianna Fáil... and remind TDs that several EU countries have changed prime minister during an EU presidency... and it didn't hurt anyone.

As Fianna Fáil marks its centenary, there are several lessons from the recent U.K. elections for the former big beast of Irish politics.

UK Labour’s current attempt at renewal and the SNP’s successful reinvention contrasts with drift and lack of ambition under Micheál Martin's leadership.

Fianna Fáil cannot wait much longer to change leader or to plan seriously for unity.

In this episode I use the famous Enoch Powell quote about political lives ending in failure "unless they are cut off in midstream at a happy juncture" to ask if any of the three leaders will know when to go?

I consider Ireland's three main party leaders through Powell's lens: is Mary Lou McDonald in trouble as leader, is Micheál Martin now delaying the inevitable; and is Simon Harris, racing toward a juncture he may never reach.

Does any party have a succession plan... or even see the merit of one?

In this 6 minute long episode Derek sets out why the government response was wrong to focus primarily on a security solution to a political problem... a political problem which its own senior members had flagged weeks ahead.