Well, it’s just a few more days until our elected representatives can take a well-earned rest from the business of drafting and scrutinising legislation.
Yes, the summer recess is almost upon us – and for some TDs it will be a mad dash to get everything done before the voting buttons are powered down, the lights are turned off and the chamber door sealed.
Certainly there is an expectation that the Government is close to finally reporting on where the alumina from Aughinish is ending up. With a couple of thousand jobs in Limerick potentially hanging in the balance, the report will be passed to the European Commission.
Pressure has been mounting from certain quarters to bring the curtain down on the exports to Russia. The Limerick plant is owned by Russian metals giant Rusal.
What can we expect before Dáil summer recess?
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Minister James Lawless said it could well be the case that the plant’s alumina is added to the list of EU sanctions – but that 40 per cent of its exports are currently purchased by the EU.
Mayor of Limerick John Moran has been writing to the Government urging them to take the futures of workers there into consideration and has said he wouldn’t be surprised if Government officials were considering some form of nationalisation.
Just what happens next is not known.
Strait talking
In other geopolitical news, the Americans and Iranians spent the weekend blowing things up as the future of the Strait of Hormuz looks as clear as a fresh oil spill.
The US says its strikes on Iranian military targets are over for now – and Iran doesn’t control the waterway. On that latter point, needless to say, Tehran is in disagreement.
Iran launched limited attacks on its Gulf neighbours on Sunday – lashing out at Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, Jordan and even Oman.
Traders still don’t anticipate a return to full-blown hostilities – due to the political pressures on Donald Trump – and the price of oil hasn’t really exploded. Brent crude was lingering below $80 a barrel this morning – roughly where it spent much of 2024.
With the Government having decided to restore excise on petrol and diesel to their old rates from September, expect much debate over the summer holidays about what exactly constitutes an energy emergency.
Future of e-scooters
E-scooters, of course, need no oil to function and are increasingly commonplace on Irish roads and footpaths.
But the serious injuries they can cause are no laughing matter.
Following the revelation earlier this month that a number of children were on life support in Temple Street hospital due to injuries they sustained while using the scooters, Minister of State Seán Canney says a ban is under consideration.
His department is examining reform of the laws around the use of e-scooters and Canney said over the weekend he had a “serious problem” with the injuries being sustained by children.
The British have banned the use of private scooters – and the Dutch have also restricted their usage.
The Green Party is arguing against an outright ban, saying they have improved urban mobility. Leader Roderic O’Gorman says the focus should be on ensuring under-16s don’t have access to them – and that the 20km speed limit should be enforced.
Explicit content
Before the Cabinet this week is a new law that would effectively ban the possession of violent pornography.
Minister for Justice Jim O’Callaghan will ask his colleagues to approve his plans to outlaw the possession, production or sharing of pornography that depicts extreme or violent acts or acts of necrophilia.
The High Court recently identified a loophole that means no such legal offence exists in the State.
Security alert
The nerviness around maintaining security during Ireland’s presidency of the European Union continues.
As revealed in emails released to this newspaper, officials at the Department of Justice were engaged in testy-sounding exchanges with their colleagues over at public expenditure about the size of the Garda budget.
There was a fair bit of to and fro late last year as they attempted to agree upon the amount of money that would be needed to secure the numerous high-level EU meetings to be hosted here.
Donaldson review
In Stormont, a review into alleged abuse and inappropriate behaviour by Jeffrey Donaldson will get under way this week.
The disgraced former leader of the DUP was convicted of 18 sex offences, including rape, last month and fresh claims about his behaviour have been aired in Belfast since.
The review is to be carried out by the director of parliamentary services and will allow politicians, staff and users of the Assembly building to come forward with information about abuse that may have occurred on the premises.
The review will run until August 21st with a report due the following week.
