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Consuelo O’Connor

JOHN McGRANE’S FAMILY BUSINESS

Date: May 7, 2020 - High Society

IT IS unlikely that John McGrane – the head of the family business lobby and support organisation Family Business Network Ireland – is pleased with Paschal Donohoe’s €6.5bn package to help companies get through the pandemic. Last month, McGrane penned a piece for the Indo in which he pleaded for pure cash injections into family… Read more »

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2011 Hawker 900XP

JOE McCARTHY’S PRIVATE JETS

Date: May 7, 2020 - High Society

GOOD TO see that, while Mick O’Leary and Willie Walsh have been putting on the poor mouth, the sky appears to be the limit for sellers of private jets here, at least as far as Joe McCarthy is concerned. Certainly, McCarthy made owning a private jet look like a pretty straightforward deal, in an interview… Read more »

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Jason Hannon

MAINSTAY MEDICAL’S UNHEALTHY TREATMENT OF SHAREHOLDERS

Date: May 7, 2020 - Moneybags

MAINSTAY MEDICAL floated off in Dublin six years ago at €21 a share, raising €18m, but it has proved an underperformer ever since. The shares collapsed from €16.50 at the beginning of November 2018 to €2.40 at the end of that month due to disappointing trial results for the company’s back pain remedy and the… Read more »

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Michael Stanley

CAIRN HOMES FACING A TOUGH 2020

Date: May 7, 2020 - Moneybags

CAIRN HOMES has some notable features, including a huge number of new housing unit completions. Most notable, however, was the way in which the founders, including Mick Stanley and Alan McIntosh, scooped a massive windfall after they floated off Cairn. While McIntosh has returned to London, he is still sitting on 40 million shares, having… Read more »

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WAVF Castleknock Hospitality BAL Susan Bergin Tixserve EOG Fergal Naughton hot-water-brigade def

BART DALY’S CELTIC GOLD

Date: May 7, 2020 - Brief Cases

AT THE weekend it was reported that insolvency specialists Jim Stafford and Tom Murray of Friel Stafford have adapted to the ‘new normal’ by hosting creditors meetings via Zoom. One of those companies is Marzean Services, where the principal player is multi-talented former legal eagle Bart Daly. Daly holds his stake in Marzean through a… Read more »

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Ronan Lynch

RONAN LYNCH’S NEW REGIME

Date: May 7, 2020 - Brief Cases

THE REPRESENTATIVE bodies for publicans has been putting the pedal to the floor in an effort to convince the government to allow them to open their doors at the end of next month. This looks like quite a challenge for the Vintners’ Federation of Ireland and the Licensed Vintners’ Association (LVA). The chair of the… Read more »

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WAVF Castleknock Hospitality BAL Susan Bergin Tixserve EOG Fergal Naughton hot-water-brigade def

MARIE BRAMBLE’S BAD MARKS

Date: May 7, 2020 - Brief Cases

A COMPANY that appeared to be very much honours material in the education field thanks to its popular school app, Unique Diary Productions Ltd (trading as Unique Publishing), has just registered a fail in the High Court, where a liquidator has been appointed courtesy of the Revenue Commissioners. Certainly, it would appear that Unique Publishing’s… Read more »

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David Hall

DAVID HALL’S BUSY SCHEDULE

Date: May 7, 2020 - Brief Cases

COVID-19 is keeping David Hall busy. One of the self-promoter’s multitude of tweets last month proclaimed that extra services being provided by his private ambulance company to the HSE resulted in the company’s busiest day ever. This will help keep his mind off the recent publication of details of a tax settlement by his profitable… Read more »

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Consuelo O’Connor

Date: April 23, 2020 - High Society

CELEBRITY COUPLE Theresa Lowe and Frank McNamara have been in the news lately for all the wrong reasons and last month the High Court finally approved a personal insolvency arrangement that allowed the high-profile couple write off a whopping €3m of their debts. Now, a communications operation they set up has been listed for striking… Read more »

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Ballyfin House

BALLYFIN HOUSE BLUES

Date: April 23, 2020 - High Society

LIKE OTHER tourist destinations, the magnificent Ballyfin House and demesne in Co Laois has had to be shuttered due to Covid-19. Given the steep prices charged during the all-important summer season and the massive losses built up at American moneybags Fred Krehibel’s dream property, the sooner things get back to normal the better. The restoration… Read more »

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Tadhg Daly

TADHG DALY’S REVENGE

Date: April 23, 2020 - Affairs of the Nation

THE TURNING of the PR tide against Simon Harris has been in no small measure due to the relentless efforts of one Tadhg Daly, the chief executive of Nursing Homes Ireland (NHI) – the body that represents the homes. He might have enjoyed some of the digs he got in at the politicians when doing… Read more »

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Caroline Keeling

CAROLINE KEELING’S WORKERS

Date: April 23, 2020 - Affairs of the Nation

THERE WAS a predictable outcry by Ireland’s hair-trigger xenophobes when fruit company Keelings was reported to be bringing in migrant workers to pick fruit in the middle of the pandemic. It culminated in some half-wits from the National Party turning up at a factory with an ‘Ireland for the Irish’ banner, which predictably prompted a… Read more »

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Micheál Martin

PROFILE: MICHEÁL MARTIN

Date: April 23, 2020 - Pillars of Society

MICHEÁL MARTIN may become a scientific and political phenomenon: the man who was saved by Covid-19. But the consequences for Fianna Fáil could be fatal. The current unprecedented health crisis, and the alarming economic one it is creating, could result in Martin realising his long-cherished ambition of becoming taoiseach. The compelling need for a government… Read more »

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Neasa Hourigan

YOUNG BLOOD: NEASA HOURIGAN

Date: April 23, 2020 - The Young Bloods

THE GREEN Party – despite basking in the success of increasing its Dáil seat tally to 12, its highest ever – is coming under increasing attack in the media, at a level normally reserved for Sinn Féin, for its temerity in refusing to play ball with the old establishment parties. Before the election, it was… Read more »

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Declan Kelly

DECLAN KELLY’S DANCING SHOES

Date: April 23, 2020 - Affairs of the Nation

TENEO FOUNDER Declan Kelly is not one to play down his accomplishments. The latest talent no one knew he had is that of an executive producer with one Lady Gaga for a concert to raise funds for the World Health Organisation, broadcast on RTÉ last weekend. The fundraising effort may at least help push those… Read more »

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John FitzGerald

JOHN FITZGERALD’S TWO HATS

Date: April 23, 2020 - Fowl Emissions

LIKE MOST of the Fianna Fáil/Fine Gael ‘draft document’ on forming a government, the section on climate is vague and threadbare. There is no mention of climate science nor of fossil fuels. This will comfort Ireland’s oil and gas suits, who are fighting to stop their sunset industry sinking below the horizon. Fans of Goldhawk… Read more »

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Bill Holohan

BILL HOLOHAN’S WASTED COSTS ORDER

Date: April 23, 2020 - Affairs of the Nation

THERE WAS a pretty damning ruling issued in the High Court earlier this month by Judge Denis McDonald, in relation to the case of a personal insolvency arrangement for one Mark Fay. Of interest to Goldhawk, however, was the outcome for the solicitor involved, the highly respected Bill Holohan. Holohan is probably the biggest player… Read more »

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Siobhan and Kasao Learat

SIOBHAN LEARAT’S UPSCALE DESIGNS

Date: April 23, 2020 - High Society

GOLDHAWK WAS not surprised to see irrepressible travel agent Siobhan Byrne Learat feature in the Sindo last week, where her Adams & Butler business got another plug, this time in the context of dreary Covid-19. Siobhan explained that “people have always wanted to run away. The only difference is that what they’re running away from… Read more »

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Connor Murphy

CONNOR MURPHY’S RTÉ GIG

Date: April 23, 2020 - Fit to Print?

ALTHOUGH APPOINTMENTS to state boards have effectively been put on hold while the interim/caretaker government remains in situ, it turns out that some positions just can’t wait. This is the case for Moya Doherty’s RTÉ board – tech money wiz Connor Murphy has just been appointed by communications minister Richard Bruton. Reflecting the new focus… Read more »

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FP-3808

VOL. 38 ISSUE 08

Date: April 23, 2020 -

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ROBERT ARMSTRONG’S RECORD

Date: April 23, 2020 - Affairs of the Nation

THE 1,700-word obituary of Lord Robert Armstrong, published in the Irish Times last weekend, omitted a few interesting details. As principal private secretary to prime ministers Ted Heath from 1970 and then Harold Wilson until 1975, Armstrong was intimately involved with the British government’s response to the Troubles in the north from the start. He… Read more »

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John McGabhann

JOHN McGABHANN’S REPORT CARD

Date: April 23, 2020 - Affairs of the Nation

TEACHERS’ UNION boss John McGabhann probably cannot believe his luck as he prepares to retire as general secretary of the Teachers’ Union of Ireland (TUI) later this year. His union’s pre-election, one-day strike last February made little impact, but the absence of an annual congress this Easter has sidestepped any anticipated unruly behaviour by browned-off… Read more »

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JOHN KIDD’S LOBBYING

Date: April 23, 2020 - Affairs of the Nation

GIVEN THAT there is only one thing on people’s minds these days, it is predictable that some of the latest lobbying activity has focused on the pandemic. Among those who have been busy recently, not surprisingly, is the Irish Refugee Council. Chief executive Nick Henderson has been in contact with justice minister Charlie Flanagan and… Read more »

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Niamh O'Beirne

EY RESCUES HSE

Date: April 23, 2020 - Affairs of the Nation

THE STRAIN on the HSE is beginning to show, with top dog Paul Reid having to turn to EY Ireland to draft in one of its senior management consultants – the highly regarded ‘Performance Improvement and People Advisory Services’ partner Niamh O’Beirne – to beef-up the Covid-19 testing teams. The re-branded EY Ireland was, of… Read more »

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IRISH TIMES AND “THAT CHURCH”

Date: April 23, 2020 - Affairs of the Nation

YOU’VE GOT to hand it to the Irish Times. When it comes to the dreaded Catholic Church, the paper knows the right tone to strike. An editorial was published on Good Friday under the heading “A Tough Reality” and, for Catholics, it would not have made for easy reading, albeit there would not have been… Read more »

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Robbie Lawlor

THE DANGER OF ‘GOING NORTH’

Date: April 23, 2020 - Hush Hush

THE RECENT murder of psychopath Robbie Lawlor in Belfast has generated a lot of lurid headlines, but the media missed the all-Ireland realpolitik behind the slaying. Comment on the full details of the murder is restricted as a man may soon be brought before the courts on charges related to the killing, but Robbie Lawlor’s… Read more »

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HushHush-def

VINCENT JENNINGS’S WORKERS

Date: April 23, 2020 - Hush Hush

THE COUNTRY’S corner-shop keepers and ‘convenience store’ owners got a shock in recent weeks as their poorly paid employees did a runner. They had gone to claim the Covid-19 €350 payment, which was more than they earned for working for members of the Convenience Stores and Newsagents’ Association. The association’s boss, Vincent Jennings, and some… Read more »

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Roz Purcell

THE HOT AIR BRIGADE

Date: April 23, 2020 - The Hot Air Brigade

I am trying my best to be 100% present in whatever is happening right now, aiming to be totally and utterly ‘forcibly’ present. Roz Purcell on dealing with lockdown restrictions, TheJournal.ie, submitted by reader Admittedly, I did pull out my red sequin ballgown for a trip to Lidl. Taryn de Vere’s small thrills, RTÉ This… Read more »

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Robin Swann

IT WILL BE BANANAS

Date: April 23, 2020 - Northwind

A STRING of experts on epidemiology, north and south, have given interviews and written op-eds advocating an all-Ireland approach to the Covid-19 pandemic. They sound increasingly desperate. Most recently Dr Gabriel Scally, best known here for his inquiry into the cervical smear scandal, has written in both the Irish Times and Irish News (Apr 18)… Read more »

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Seamus Woulfe

SEAMUS WOLFE’S ENERGY POLICY

Date: April 23, 2020 - Fowl Emissions

AMID THE coronavirus chaos, carmakers, airlines and oil companies are persuading governments to roll back environmental regulations to help them weather the Covid-19 storm. Most gratuitous among these is the US plastics industry, which has exploited fears about the virus, with manufacturers convincing several US state governors to suspend bans on plastic bags in the… Read more »

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Simon Coveney

ISRAEL NOT LOSING ANY SLEEP

Date: April 23, 2020 - Last Refuge

GOLDHAWK WAS heartened to see in the proposed programme for government advanced by Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael that there was a firm commitment to “support efforts towards a durable, two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestine conflict”. At least, if they can’t solve the housing and health crises, things might be looking up in the Middle… Read more »

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Simon Harris

SIMON HARRIS’S BRIT BASHING

Date: April 23, 2020 - Last Refuge

YOU KNOW something’s not quite right when a Fine Gael minister defensively reaches out for a bit of Brit bashing. Such was the case when health minister Simon Harris was on the ropes over the high death count in our old folks homes (sorry, “residential settings”). He hesitated before telling RTÉ radio that the Republic… Read more »

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Janice Boylan Irish Military Mali Coolock Says No IFP Hermann Kelly Timmy Dooley Aontú Mal O’Hara Fintan O’Toole Josepha Madigan Eoghan Harris Ukraine War Micheál Martin Middle East Philip Ryan Seán Clancy Simon Coveney Hugo MacNeill Mountbatten Neasa Hourigan Green Party Martin NPT Ivana Bacik Independents Limerick Hospital Overcrowding Barry Cowen

MICHEÁL MARTIN’S HEADACHE

Date: April 23, 2020 - Last Refuge

WHILE THE media are concentrating on the chances of one of the smaller parties rowing in behind a Programme for Government put forward by Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael, the real story is that the noose is tightening around FF leader Micheál Martin’s neck, with more and more local constituency groups coming out against the… Read more »

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John Paul Phelan

BLUESHIRTS LOVE-BOMB ‘NUTTERS’

Date: April 23, 2020 - Last Refuge

IT’S HARD to believe that the Blueshirts are blowing kisses at the Greens after bad-mouthing them as ‘nutters’ to the Irish Farmers’ Association, whose members have been known to pour slurry into rivers, set gorse fires and chop hedges used for nesting. During the election campaign, it was easy for minister of state John Paul… Read more »

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Eoghan Murphy

EOGHAN MURPHY’S WAITING GAME

Date: April 23, 2020 - Last Refuge

HOUSING MINISTER Eoghan Murphy has been enjoying some Covid-19 cover over his delays in releasing the social housing completions by local councils in 2019. The figures are not good and will be well below the targeted 6,242 new builds for 2019, up from 4,251 new social houses completed in 2018. By the end of last… Read more »

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Bog-Cuttings-Defaul

BOG CUTTINGS

Date: April 23, 2020 - Bog Cuttings

‘Stick It In A Certain Location’ JASON SHEEHAN of 5 Renard View, Knightstown, appeared before Cahersiveen District Court in relation to a 2018 incident involving gardaí. Garda Inspector Michael Fleming told the court that Sheehan became abusive towards gardaí when they confronted him in Cahersiveen. When the gardaí notified Sheehan that if he continued his… Read more »

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