Pilots at freight airline ASL to strike in week before Christmas
Pilots at Irish airline ASL Aviation Holdings will strike for 16 hours next Tuesday, December 16thPilots at freight airline ASL Holdings will strike next week in a dispute over trade union recognition and pay. Around 90 members of the Irish Airline Pilots’ Association (Ialpa) at the company will strike for 16 hours next Tuesday, December 16th, the trade union has told management. Ialpa accused the airline of refusing to meet its negotiators at a crucial stage in talks on a deal covering union recognition, pay and conditions. Most of the pilots working for ASL Ireland are members of Ialpa, the organisation maintains. He stressed that the union remained available to meet ASL at any time.
Source:The Irish Times
December 10, 2025 01:25 UTC
The Irish Times view on the drone incursion: another gap in Ireland’s defences
The LÉ William Butler Yeats: did not fire on the drones as there were civilan aircraft in the area. Drones have rapidly become integral to modern warfare yet the Defence Forces remain without the basic tools needed to combat them. Naval vessels such as the LÉ William Butler Yeats do not have air search radar, electronic jamming equipment or other drone counter measures. The command and control structures of the Defence Forces – there is no single joint command over the Navy and Air Corps – may have further hampered any response. Beyond that, the wider issue that must be addressed is the role of the Defence Forces in a world that has changed significantly, making security and defence much higher priorities.
Source:The Irish Times
December 09, 2025 23:33 UTC
Air traffic control thought whistleblower pilot’s jet headed for ‘wrong runway’, WRC told
“That’s a very broad question, but not necessarily,” Mr McCabe said. Mr Mallon put it to him he had “agreed that the likely cause of this problem was human error” in the safety investigation. “We felt we were under duress to drive the investigation down the route of pilot mis-selection and not a technical difficulty with the aircraft,” Mr McCabe said. “That point was put to me, but not backed up by any evidence,” Mr McCabe said. “Aer Lingus are very much pushing the idea that air traffic control intervened.
Source:The Irish Times
December 09, 2025 23:10 UTC
Sentencing of former TD Colm Keaveney for driving under the influence of cocaine adjourned
The sentencing of former TD Colm Keaveney for driving under the influence of cocaine has been adjourned for the second time. Keaveney (54), Kilcrevanty, Tuam, Co Galway, pleaded guilty to the charge at Tuam District Court on September 9th as well as to two counts of driving with no insurance. The court had previously heard that Keaveney failed a roadside drug test in September 2023. The court heard he subsequently produced an invalid certificate and was later arrested by appointment and charged with driving with no insurance. On that occasion, he failed to stop after a collision with another vehicle and subsequently failed to provide a blood or urine sample.
Source:The Irish Times
December 09, 2025 23:08 UTC
HSE offers €750 to victims of system-wide cyberattack
Image: Getty Images/ iStockphotoThe Health Service Executive (HSE) is offering €750 in compensation to victims of a cyberattack that shutdown the health service’s IT systems and compromised the data of thousands of patients and staff four years ago. Conti, a Russia-based cybercrime group, launched its ransomware attack on the health service on May 14th, 2021. O’Dowd Solicitors, a Cork-based firm representing more than 100 people affected by the HSE data breach, received the cash offer from the HSE on Friday. The offer from the HSE comes after a recent high-profile case affirming damages to victims of data breaches. [ HSE cyber attack: More than 470 legal proceedings issued against health service after ransomware hitOpens in new window ]According to the HSE, it has “invested significantly” in cyber capability since the attack.
Source:The Irish Times
December 09, 2025 22:46 UTC
French prime minister wins crucial budget vote but at huge political cost
France's prime minister Sébastien Lecornu at the National Assembly in Paris on Tuesday. Photograph: Magali Cohen/ Hans Lucas/AFP via Getty ImagesFrench lawmakers narrowly approved the 2026 social security budget on Tuesday, handing prime minister Sébastien Lecornu a crucial victory but at enormous political cost that could still threaten his fragile government. Socialists backed the bill after Mr Lecornu agreed to freeze president Emmanuel Macron’s landmark 2023 pension reform until after the 2027 presidential election. The government aims to cut France’s budget deficit – already one of the euro zone’s largest – to less than 5 per cent of GDP next year. A banner depicting the French president with the text 'Macron despises the Republic' during a demonstration against the state budget.
Source:The Irish Times
December 09, 2025 20:57 UTC
OPW to spend €10m on catering as EU presidency nears
Then US President Joe Biden spoke at a state dinner at Dublin Castle two years ago. Photograph: PAThe Office of Public Works (OPW) is set to spend an estimated €10 million on event catering and hospitality services for State dinners, high level lunches and other State events at Dublin Castle, Áras an Uachtaráin and other venues. The OPW has issued the tender as Ireland prepares to host the presidency of the Council of the European Union in the second half of 2026. The OPW anticipates three to six suppliers will be appointed and specific contracts will be awarded using a rotation agreement. The tender states that companies seeking to tender must have an annual turnover of €500,000 or more for the last three years.
Source:The Irish Times
December 09, 2025 20:26 UTC
Former presidential hopeful Gareth Sheridan says photo with Tucker Carlson was at non-political event
Former Irish presidential election hopeful Gareth Sheridan has said a Christmas party at which he was pictured with controversial ex-Fox News host Tucker Carlson was “not a political event”. The party was hosted by Alp Pouch, a nicotine pouch brand launched by Mr Carlson. There were also celebrities in attendance, including country rapper Jelly Roll, who posed for a picture alongside Mr Sheridan. Mr Carlson was one of Fox News’s biggest stars until he was fired in 2023. Mr Sheridan was unsuccessful in his bid to get on the presidential election ballot paper earlier this year.
Source:The Irish Times
December 09, 2025 20:25 UTC
Some disabled people are going to libraries to stay warm, protest hears
Protesters outside Leinster House calling on the Government for immediate emergency winter payment for people with disabilities. Photograph: Enda O'DowdDisabled people are “living in one room or going to local libraries to stay warm”, a protest outside Leinster House heard on Tuesday. The coalition called for an “immediate emergency winter payment” for disabled people and the introduction of a permanent cost-of-disability payment next year. Joan Carthy, a wheelchair-user and IWA advocacy manager, could not understand why the Government “doesn’t get the urgency of the call for the winter payment”. Last year’s payments “actually made a difference to people’s lives”, she said, adding that some disabled people are “living in one room or going to local libraries to stay warm”.
Source:The Irish Times
December 09, 2025 20:06 UTC
Contest to become next GAA president looks set to be two-man race
Photograph: Leah Scholes/InphoThe contest to become the next president of the GAA looks set to be a two-man race between Tipperary’s Ger Ryan and Wexford’s Derek Kent. Wexford GAA stated: “Derek has always shown great leadership and drive with both Wexford and Leinster, and he leaves a great legacy at county and provincial level. Irrespective of whether that timeline is upheld, the next GAA president will be in office during what is certain to be a period of unprecedented change. He was vice-chairman of Munster GAA from 2019-22, chaired Munster GAA’s Coaching and Games Committee from 2019-22 and also served as provincial council PRO between 2014-17. Wexford’s most recent GAA president was Michael Kehoe (1949-52).
Source:The Irish Times
December 09, 2025 19:51 UTC
Elon Musk and X granted High Court permission to challenge Coimisiún na Meán investigation
Lawyers for Elon Musk and X Holdings Corp successfully applied to challenge the investigation, which relates to X’s complaints procedures. Photograph: Kirsty Wigglesworth/PAElon Musk and social media giant X have been granted permission by the High Court to challenge an investigation by Irish media regulator Coimisiún na Meán into whether X, formerly Twitter, contravened the EU’s Digital Services Act. The two applicants claim that neither of them “provide the X Service in the EU, or have any contractual relationship relating to the X Service” relating to recipients of the service in the EU. XIUC has also named Mr Musk and X Holdings as notice parties in its challenge. In a statement, a spokesperson for Coimisiún na Meán said: “We are aware of the proceedings that have been filed by Elon Musk and X Holdings Corp this week.
Source:The Irish Times
December 09, 2025 19:40 UTC
Workers set to strike at Meta contractor Covalen in dispute over pay and union recognition
About 60 staff at Meta contractor Covalen will take industrial action on Wednesday is a dispute over grading, pay and union recognition. Photograph: Kirill Kudryavtsev/Getty ImagesAbout 60 staff at Meta contractor Covalen will take industrial action on Wednesday is a dispute over grading, pay and union recognition. The workers involved say they are classed as community operations analysts when they in fact work as paralegals. They are seeking a regrading and a pay review which the Communication Workers Union (CWU) contends should result in pay increases of at least €1,000 per annum. These are separate to the union as the company will not engage with the CWU for the purposes of collective bargaining.
Source:The Irish Times
December 09, 2025 19:17 UTC
‘Extraordinary talent’: Fashion designer Paul Costelloe mourned at funeral
Paul Costelloe’s daughter Jessica (left) and his widow Anne (centre) leave St Patrick’s Church after the funeral service. The main celebrant was Canon Michael O’Dea, parish priest of St Simon’s Church in Putney, London, where the family have a home. Costelloe, one of the highest profile names in Irish and UK fashion, died at the age of 80 in London in November after a short illness. Photograph: Barry Cronin/ The Irish TimesMembers of the Costelloe family carry his remains into the church in Monkstown. Photograph: Barry Cronin/ The Irish TimesHe also recalled the annual Christmas card he was personally given by Costelloe.
Source:The Irish Times
December 09, 2025 18:07 UTC
The Irish Times sells its majority shareholding in WLR FM to Daily Mail Group
The Irish Times group is selling its majority stake in WLF FM in Waterford. Photograph: iSTockThe Irish Times media group has sold its 75 per cent shareholding in Waterford-based radio station WLR FM to the Daily Mail Group for an undisclosed sum. Other brands here include Evoke, Extra.ie, OneFabDay.com, The Irish Daily Mail, The Irish Mail on Sunday, and Business Plus magazine. Having had its roots in pirate radio, WLR secured a local licence, went on air in September 1989 and describes itself as Waterford’s biggest radio station. The Irish Times had previously sold its shareholdings in regional broadcaster Beat 102-103, and Red FM in Cork to Bauer Media.
Source:The Irish Times
December 09, 2025 18:02 UTC
CRH’s US move pays off with S&P 500 inclusion
Then CRH chief executive Albert Manifold rang the opening bell at the New York Stock Exchange when the company switched its listing there in 2023. Photograph: NYSEIf it hadn’t already, CRH has officially joined the big leagues with its admission to the S&P 500 Index later this month. When it shifted its primary listing to the New York Stock Exchange, inclusion in the S&P 500 was one of the key attractions to making the switch. It brings deeper liquidity to the CRH market and makes the stock more attractive than it even already was. Shares in Paddy Power owner Flutter meanwhile are more or less flat since it moved its primary listing to the New York Stock Exchange in May last year.
Source:The Irish Times
December 09, 2025 18:01 UTC