{"id":476055,"date":"2026-05-09T07:46:11","date_gmt":"2026-05-09T07:46:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/476055\/"},"modified":"2026-05-09T07:46:11","modified_gmt":"2026-05-09T07:46:11","slug":"why-did-the-aontu-spindoctor-cross-the-road-to-canvass-a-very-approachable-bertie-the-irish-times","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/476055\/","title":{"rendered":"Why did the Aont\u00fa spindoctor cross the road? To canvass a very approachable Bertie \u2013 The Irish Times"},"content":{"rendered":"

Grumpy and waspish politicians, luvvies and hacks of a certain age will be dusting off their bon mots and festering resentments next Wednesday when former minister Shane Ross<\/a>, aka Winston Churchtown, launches his long-awaited opus on RT\u00c9<\/a>. <\/p>\n

Never one to sell himself short, the former stockbroker, Sindo business editor and TD for Dublin Rathdown is promising \u201ca colourful account of the scandal-drenched history of Ireland\u2019s national broadcaster\u201d. <\/p>\n

Winston likes his books on the sensational side which is why we found ourselves loitering in the High Court<\/a> last January waiting to see if a defamation case arising from his recent biography of Mary Lou McDonald<\/a> was going to go ahead. <\/p>\n

Mercifully, it didn\u2019t in the end and we could all go home. <\/p>\n

Martin Lanigan, the husband of the Sinn F\u00e9in leader, had sued over references to him in Mary Lou McDonald: A Republican Riddle. The action was settled after the author and his publisher issued a lengthy court apology.<\/p>\n

[\u00a0Husband of Sinn F\u00e9in leader settles defamation case against Shane Ross following apologyOpens in new window<\/a>\u00a0]<\/p>\n

Now the irrepressible Ross is on the circuit again with RT\u00c9: Saints, Scholars and Scandals, in which he \u201cwinds back the clock to examine RT\u00c9\u2019s history of broadcasting excellence alongside the accusations of corruption, waste and ineptitude it has faced along the way\u201d. <\/p>\n

Expect wall-to-wall Winston in the weeks to come on the national airwaves and in the popular prints. <\/p>\n

The author has drafted in the wit and repartee of former Labour Party leader and minister Pat Rabbitte to perform the launch.<\/p>\n

Most of the old Independent Alliance band will be reuniting for the launch. Retired former junior ministers John Halligan and Finian McGrath will be there, while two of them are back in Coalition government again as Independents. Kevin \u201cBoxer\u201d Moran, Minister of State with responsibility for the OPW, is expected, but erstwhile colleague Se\u00e1n Canney, Minister of State for Transport, is highly unlikely to make an appearance after he fell out with Winston over a junior ministerial job-share appointment in 2018 and quit the group. <\/p>\n

Between all the old RT\u00c9 luvvies and politicos, it should be a good night.<\/p>\n

Doorstepping Bertie\"LarissaLarissa Nolan, national director of communications with Aont\u00fa <\/p>\n

The latest scribe to cross to the dark side from journalism to politics is the vastly experienced Larissa Nolan, who left her job as features editor with the Irish Mirror earlier this month to take up a role as national director of communications for Aont\u00fa.<\/p>\n

With two byelections in full swing, she has pitched in with the party\u2019s canvassing effort, knocking on doors in the Dublin Central constituency when time permits. <\/p>\n

On Wednesday, Larissa, who is not from the northside, found herself in a rather fancy estate in Drumcondra with the team. When they approached one particular house, a garda emerged from his little hut to talk to them.<\/p>\n

And then the penny dropped. The team was in Beresford.<\/p>\n

Larissa asked the garda if they could canvass the householder but before they got to the door, Bertie Ahern<\/a> was already on his way out to them.<\/p>\n

Mad to chat. <\/p>\n

Larissa \u2013 who worked for the Sunday Independent during the Bert\u2019s Celtic Tiger era when he did his utmost to make sure \u201cthe boom times\u201d were \u201cgetting even boomier\u201d \u2013 said her natural instinct was to whip out her phone recorder \u201cbecause in the years I dealt with him, Bertie was box office\u201d. <\/p>\n

But now she is on the other side of the fence. <\/p>\n

They talked for over 20 minutes with the former taoiseach shooting the breeze on all sorts of things from the Belfast Agreement to his time as minister for labour, to the recent fuel protests and how he would have dealt with the protesters.<\/p>\n

He also gave his views on the controversial candidacy of Gerry Hutch and his prospects in the constituency: \u201cHe doesn\u2019t have a chance.\u201d <\/p>\n

After 30 years in journalism, the freshly minted political adviser told us she is fully aware of Bertie\u2019s chequered legacy but, on her first canvass, she wasn\u2019t expecting to come across a former taoiseach on the doorstep. <\/p>\n

He was engaging and generous with his time. When she told him about the new job, he fondly recalled two former press advisers \u2013 PJ Mara and Mandy Johnston. He said he very much admires Peadar T\u00f3ib\u00edn, the Aont\u00fa leader. <\/p>\n

But he would, wouldn\u2019t he.<\/p>\n

And then the former uachtar\u00e1in of Fianna F\u00e1il told her: \u201cI voted Aont\u00fa before.\u201d <\/p>\n

A number one vote? <\/p>\n

\u201cYes.\u201d <\/p>\n

But this time he will be giving the Fianna F\u00e1il candidate his first preference, with his second preference going to Aont\u00fa. After decades spent successfully pounding the pavements of Dublin Central, if anyone knows what canvassers like to hear on the doorsteps, it\u2019s serial poll-topper Bertie Ahern.<\/p>\n

\u201cI voted number one because I didn\u2019t fancy the Fianna F\u00e1il candidate,\u201d he rather unkindly divulged. But then, the Ahern camp and its notoriously territorial election machine was never terribly fond of the very capable Mary Fitzpatrick, who had the misfortune of going up against it on a few occasions.<\/p>\n

Naturally, Larissa was keen to hear more about when he voted for Aont\u00fa. Exactly which election was this?<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was either the last one or the one before that.\u201d<\/p>\n

2020 or 2024?<\/p>\n

\u201cI can\u2019t remember,\u201d said Bertie.<\/p>\n

Fancy that.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s not every day you meet a former taoiseach like that. I would have got a two-page spread out of him for the Mirror,\u201d said Peadar T\u00f3ib\u00edn\u2019s new spindoctor.<\/p>\n

Killeagh la-la land<\/p>\n

A good week for Fianna F\u00e1il\u2019s James O\u2019Connor whose legislation to reverse the ban on nuclear energy in Ireland got a lot of attention as the D\u00e1il wrestled with the knotty question of Ireland\u2019s reliance on imported energy and the urgent need to address the issue by generating more of it at home.<\/p>\n

O\u2019Connor\u2019s plan was called a \u201charebrained\u201d notion by Labour as it would take more than a decade to get nuclear up and running and that\u2019s not even taking into account the convoluted requirements of our planning system. <\/p>\n

But the Taoiseach had already stated at the EU Energy Summit at the start of the week that Ireland should also seriously consider all alternatives to renewable power, including nuclear energy. He reiterated his view in the D\u00e1il on Wednesday, stressing that Ireland should have a \u201cserious examination\u201d of nuclear power as part of its long-term energy plans. <\/p>\n

[\u00a0Ireland should \u2018examine seriously\u2019 nuclear power option, says TaoiseachOpens in new window<\/a>\u00a0]<\/p>\n

When Independent Ireland\u2019s Ken O\u2019Flynn called for the lifting of the nuclear ban, the Taoiseach referred him to O\u2019Connor\u2019s legislation and said his Government would be examining it. <\/p>\n

Miche\u00e1l must be very pleased with young James of the occasional mutinous tendencies \u2013 his Cork East TD\u2019s latest swipe at the party leadership came in that highly critical statement from Fianna F\u00e1il\u2019s three youngest TDs in the wake of the fuel protest a few weeks ago.<\/p>\n

With James keeping his head buried in his nuclear legislation, the Taoiseach might get a bit of a rest.<\/p>\n

And then on Friday, Deputy O\u2019Connor was happy to prove that the squeaky wheel often does get the most oil when the contract was signed for the construction of the Castlemartyr and Killeagh bypass in his constituency. <\/p>\n

Yes. That would be Killeagh of the Kingfishr song. And it\u2019s in your head now. You\u2019re welcome.<\/p>\n

In October of 2021, as a first-time deputy and Baby of the D\u00e1il, James threw a strop and threatened to quit the party if the coalition rowed back on promises to upgrade the road in his constituency.<\/p>\n

He believed he was \u201clied\u201d to by a \u201cmultitude of colleagues\u201d with assurances that the projects were earmarked for commencement. \u201cI feel I have been deeply misled. I am hurt.\u201d<\/p>\n

Miche\u00e1l Martin, not for the first time, had to reassure him that all would be well. <\/p>\n

Now James is circulating photos of the signing ceremony at Youghal town council on Friday.<\/p>\n

He\u2019ll probably put it on his Christmas card for this year. <\/p>\n

Once he Photoshops Fine Gael\u2019s Jerry Buttimer out of the front row. <\/p>\n

Burning issues<\/p>\n

Speaking of Jerry Buttimer, the Minister of State for Community Development and Rural Transport, was the delegated junior Minister reading out the scripted replies on matters mostly not within his remit in the Seanad on Thursday. <\/p>\n

He was in for Commencement Matters, dealing with Senators\u2019 questions on a diverse range of issues including international agreements, road tolls, domestic violence, equality, housing schemes and the tax code. <\/p>\n

The tax code question was to do with suntan lotion and it came from the FG Senator from Limerick, Maria Byrne.<\/p>\n

It is, as she rightly pointed out, an \u201call-important topic\u201d as she asked for the Government to abolish VAT on sunscreen and sun protection products. Using figures from the Irish Cancer Society, she said 13,000 people are diagnosed with skin cancer every year. But even though the medical profession has long encouraged people to use sunscreen, it is classified as a cosmetic item under EU law despite being proven to prevent skin cancer. She has been asking repeatedly, but to no avail, to have these products reclassified as pharmaceutical. <\/p>\n

In 2022, a zero VAT rate was applied to hormone replacement therapy, HRT patches and creams, and to sanitary products, while sun cream remained in the 23 per cent category, Maria pointed out. \u201cI really can\u2019t figure out why such products are classed as cosmetic,\u201d she said. <\/p>\n

(Isn\u2019t it interesting that the products finally given a zero rating only four years ago apply to vital women\u2019s items?) <\/p>\n

\"JerryJerry Buttimer. Photograph: Sam Boal\/Collins <\/p>\n

Jerry Buttimer read out a long, convoluted reply supplied by Revenue. The upshot of this Civil Service screed was that the EU is unwilling to budge on the sunscreen issue. <\/p>\n

\u201cThey are pharmaceutical products that prevent skin cancer. You are 100 per cent right about that and I am not just saying that as your colleague and friend. You are right that sunscreen prevents skin cancer,\u201d said Jerry. <\/p>\n

EU negotiations to change other VAT directives also allowed the Government \u201cto move the VAT rate for automatic external defibrillators to zero, which the Senator will be aware was a long-standing request of many in the Oireachtas\u201d, he added. <\/p>\n

However, he regretted that it was not possible to get any joy on the sunscreen front.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt is my understanding that no further changes to annex III of the VAT directive are expected in the medium term, which is unfortunate.\u201d <\/p>\n

But keep on asking anyway, Maria \u2013 through the Inter-Parliamentary Union, the Department of Finance and her European colleagues, said Jerry, reading from Revenue\u2019s impenetrable script. <\/p>\n

Also, he informed the Senator: \u201cIt would do no harm to engage with the EU commissioner, Michael McGrath, and other commissioners, on the matter.\u201d <\/p>\n

Maybe our own Minister for Finance, Simon Harris, could take up the cudgels so determinedly wielded in recent years by the lowly Senator. Simon\u2019s sunscreen VAT exemption could be his equivalent of Miche\u00e1l Martin\u2019s smoking ban and, as the climate hots up, help cover the exorbitant cost of necessary sun cream during a cost-of-living crisis. <\/p>\n

That would be only Tropic (Hawaiian).<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Grumpy and waspish politicians, luvvies and hacks of a certain age will be dusting off their bon mots…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":476056,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[40],"tags":[49,15526,9,10,106968,18,13,14,6,19,17,11,12,15,16,5765,5,127185,7,8],"class_list":{"0":"post-476055","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-ireland","8":"tag-aontu","9":"tag-bertie-ahern","10":"tag-breaking-news","11":"tag-breakingnews","12":"tag-dublin-central-constituency","13":"tag-eire","14":"tag-featured-news","15":"tag-featurednews","16":"tag-headlines","17":"tag-ie","18":"tag-ireland","19":"tag-latest-news","20":"tag-latestnews","21":"tag-main-news","22":"tag-mainnews","23":"tag-micheal-martin","24":"tag-news","25":"tag-shane-ross","26":"tag-top-stories","27":"tag-topstories"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@ie\/116543513476598372","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/476055","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=476055"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/476055\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/476056"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=476055"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=476055"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=476055"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}