News | Latest News Analysis and Comment

Students are currently sitting the last of this year's Leaving Certificate exams (file pic)

What impact will the changes to Senior Cycle have?

Plans to overhaul how Leaving Certificate students are assessed will be discussed by the leadership of the ASTI teachers' union at a two-day meeting in Killarney which begins this afternoon.

Education • 3 hrs

The Atomic Bomb Dome in the centre of Hiroshima

What is the nuclear world order and how did we get here?

US and Israeli strikes on Iran's nuclear facilities have reignited the debate over nuclear weapons. But what is the nuclear world order we live in and how did we get here?

Analysis and Comment • 22 Jun

The so-called 'combined opposition' has pooled its weight and resources repeatedly to advance issues of mutual interest (RollingNews.ie)

'Combined opposition' set to continue, but for how long?

The sight of Opposition leaders gathering together on the plinth at Leinster House has become very familiar in recent weeks. But, overall, there are mixed views as to how long the combined opposition will last.

Analysis and Comment • 21 Jun

Vladimir Putin is running a narrative that the Biden administration was at fault for not trying to stop the war

Putin's counter-narratives and stalled talks

Russian President Vladimir Putin delivered a series of counter-narratives on the war in Ukraine at economic forum in St Peterburg while Russian drones and missiles killed civilians in Kyiv this week. It comes as US-led efforts to broker a ceasefire deal in the three-year war have stalled.

Analysis and Comment • 21 Jun

National capitals only got the assessment late on Friday afternoon - foreign ministers are supposed to give a detailed response at a meeting in Brussels on Monday

EU's indictment of Israel in Gaza: the hard work starts

The review into whether Israel is in violation of its obligations under its trade relations with the European Union, due to its conduct of the war in Gaza, was shrouded in secrecy and hobbled by last minute timing. RTÉ's Europe Editor Tony Connelly looks at what reactions may be expected on Monday.

Analysis and Comment • 21 Jun

87% of internet users used internet banking or mobile banking, according to recent CSO figures

How secure is your banking app?

Mobile banking is one of the most popular internet activities in Ireland.

Business • 22 Jun

There remain big questions about the ability of CHI to move to the new National Children's Hospital next year against this background

Spotlight on CHI far from over after tense cttee hearing

Today's appearance by Children's Health Ireland before the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health was a very tense and difficult affair, writes Fergal Bowers.

Analysis and Comment • 19 Jun

A scoping inquiry report found that there were 2,395 allegations of sexual abuse in respect of 308 schools recorded by the religious orders that ran those schools

Historic abuse policy is welcome but is just a first step

The policy - Child Protection Procedures for Schools, 2025 - is an update on its original 2017 document. One of the key innovations is, for the first time, to provide explicit guidance to schools on how they should deal with former pupils presenting with a claim of historic abuse.

Ireland • 22 Jun

The Oireachtas Health Committee heard that HIQA does not have the power to fine a nursing home (file image)

Does HIQA have sufficient powers?

The recent RTÉ Investigates exposé, on a number of private nursing homes and the fall-out, has raised fresh questions about the extent of HIQA's powers or ability to regulate the sector, writes Fergal Bowers.

Analysis and Comment • 18 Jun

President Michael D Higgins will be replaced later this year

Expect race for Ireland's next president to be a sprint

When it comes to the race to elect what our Constitution describes as the person "who shall take precedence over all other persons in the State", expect a sprint rather than a marathon.

Analysis and Comment • 20 Jun

Minister for Housing James Browne says he is confident that legislation expanding RPZ's across the country will be passed this week

More housing announcements seek to unblock issues

There may be no silver bullet to magically boost housing output, but the Government has certainly accelerated its own output on housing decisions.

Analysis and Comment • 17 Jun

How has the handling of Iran's nuclear programme changed?

For decades, the international community has wrung its hands over Iran's nuclear programme, fretting over the Islamic dictatorship's potential to build a bomb.

Analysis and Comment • 17 Jun

At the time of the banking crisis, the State put €34.5bn into both Anglo Irish Bank and Irish Nationwide

How much did the bank bailout cost taxpayers?

The taxpayer put a total of €64.1 billion into the Irish banks during the financial crisis. The key question in 2025 is how much of that has been recovered 17 years after the financial meltdown, writes David Murphy.

Analysis and Comment • 18 Jun

The study found that 58% said they consumed TV news in the last week

Watch: 5 key takeaways from Reuters news study

The annual Reuters Digital News Report for Ireland 2025 offers a fascinating, if sobering, snapshot of media consumption.

Analysis and Comment • 18 Jun

James Browne and Government's latest plans to address the housing crisis spent much of this week fighting the Dáil elements - specifically a deluge of opposition criticism

Government in battle to weather housing plan storm

The Government and Minister for Housing James Browne's latest plans to address the housing crisis spent much of this week fighting the Dáil elements - specifically a deluge of opposition criticism.

Analysis and Comment • 15 Jun

French President Emmanuel Macron confirmed the conference was called off on Friday

Two-state conference postponed - what could it achieve?

The United Nations was due to play host this week to a major high-level conference, co-chaired by France and Saudi Arabia, to try to breathe life into the "two-state solution" - the international community's long held plan for Israel and Palestine to live side by side, in sovereign countries.

Analysis and Comment • 16 Jun

President Vladimir Putin has intensified attacks on Ukraine amid a growing consensus that Russia's economy could be vulnerable

EU and US sanctions on Russia: Timing is everything

As G7 leaders converge on Kananaskis in the Canadian Rockies this weekend, the prospect of decisively tougher sanctions on Russia will loom large.

Analysis and Comment • 14 Jun

For years, concerns have centered around safeguarding in nursing homes (Stock image)

Safeguarding concerns in the spotlight after RTÉ exposé

For years, concerns have centred around safeguarding in nursing homes, writes Social Affairs Correspondent Ailbhe Conneely.

Analysis and Comment • 14 Jun

A day of reckoning came when NAMA bought loans from AIB, Bank of Ireland, EBS, Irish Nationwide and Anglo Irish Bank

Did Ireland's 'bad bank' NAMA work?

At the height of the financial crisis in 2009 Ireland set up the National Asset Management Agency, better known as NAMA.

Analysis and Comment • 15 Jun

Seat configurations can vary widely depending on the aircraft design

Is seat 11A the safest seat on a plane?

The survival of a passenger who escaped through an exit door seconds after his Air India flight crashed killing everyone else on board has prompted speculation over whether his seat, 11A, is the safest.

Analysis and Comment • 13 Jun

Iran's only nuclear power plant in the southern port city of Bushehr was built by Russia

Iran's nuclear programme - the key sites and locations

Before the Israeli strikes today, Washington and Tehran had held several rounds of talks on Iran's nuclear programme, as concerns mounted about its rapid expansion.

Middle East • 13 Jun

Donald Trump has ordered close to 3,000 troops to Los Angeles

What powers is Donald Trump using to send troops to LA?

We take a look at what powers US President Donald Trump has to invoke emergency powers to deploy US National Guard troops and active-duty marines to Los Angeles to quell protests against federal immigration raids.

US • 10 Jun

California governor Gavin Newsom called President Donald Trump's decision to deploy troops to Los Angeles 'reckless'

Does Newsom's 'rule of Don' attack lay ground for 2028?

Was this the moment California's Governor Gavin Newsom finally threw his hat in the ring for the Democratic Party's presidential nomination?

US • 11 Jun

The rent structure in new apartments will be tied to inflation rather than a 2% annual cap for all other properties

Certainty in short supply as Government reveals rent plan

The Government's rent reform plan was hailed as a document that would provide the most elusive of political commodities - certainty, but that was in short supply as the plan's impact is difficult to pin down.

Analysis and Comment • 10 Jun

Why the Government has little choice on rent cap reform

The Government has little choice about reforming the existing rent caps if it wants to attract badly needed investment back to the market to increase the supply of new homes, but the challenge is that it is very hard to relax them without consequences for tenants, writes David Murphy.

Analysis and Comment • 09 Jun

analysis-and-comment

What impact will the changes to Senior Cycle have?

What is the nuclear world order and how did we get here?

'Combined opposition' set to continue, but for how long?

Putin's counter-narratives and stalled talks

EU's indictment of Israel in Gaza: the hard work starts

How secure is your banking app?

Spotlight on CHI far from over after tense cttee hearing

Historic abuse policy is welcome but is just a first step

Does HIQA have sufficient powers?

Expect race for Ireland's next president to be a sprint

More housing announcements seek to unblock issues

How has the handling of Iran's nuclear programme changed?

How much did the bank bailout cost taxpayers?

Watch: 5 key takeaways from Reuters news study

Government in battle to weather housing plan storm

Two-state conference postponed - what could it achieve?

EU and US sanctions on Russia: Timing is everything

Safeguarding concerns in the spotlight after RTÉ exposé

Did Ireland's 'bad bank' NAMA work?

Is seat 11A the safest seat on a plane?

Iran's nuclear programme - the key sites and locations

What powers is Donald Trump using to send troops to LA?

Does Newsom's 'rule of Don' attack lay ground for 2028?

Certainty in short supply as Government reveals rent plan

Why the Government has little choice on rent cap reform