Inside Politics with Hugh Linehan23 Jul 2025

Will the Government's big projects survive the next downturn?

The Government’s updated National Development Plan (NDP) proposes to spend a vast sum of money on capital infrastructure. But beyond three ‘mega projects’ there is little detail and the vagueness of the document has led to some skepticism. In part one of today's podcast Pat Leahy joins Hugh Linehan to discuss the NDP and whether the Government's promise to prioritise infrastructure could survive a major economic shock - the kind created by heavy US tariffs, for example,

They then look at the Summer Economic Statement, also revealed this week, which shows there will not be much wriggle room in this year’s Budget.

In part two, back to the NDP and what it says about the Government’s plan for the development of transportation infrastructure. Dublin’s proposed MetroLink is one of the three mega projects identified, but there is €20 billion earmarked for other unidentified projects. Where should it go? How much will be spent on new roads, and what are the implications for carbon emissions? And what about public transport projects outside Dublin? Professor Brian Caulfield talks to Hugh and Pat.

Brian Caulfield is a Professor in Transportation in the Department of Civil, Structural and Environmental Engineering at Trinity College Dublin.

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Episoder(1047)

What to expect from Aughinish Alumina report and the call to ban e-scooters

Harry McGee and Cormac McQuinn join Hugh Linehan to look back on the week in politics:The Government’s report into Aughinish Alumina is expected to say that material produced there may or may not have...

17 Jul 39min

End of term: what was the biggest moment of the political season?

As the Dáil shuts down for the summer it's time for Hugh, Pat and Jack to take stock of the term gone by. But the biggest political event of the year didn't happen in Leinster House. The April fuel pr...

15 Jul 40min

Marine Le Pen's bid for power and the history of France's far right

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13 Jul 56min

Sinn Féin and Government on completely different timetables for Irish unity

Ellen Coyne and Cormac McQuinn join Hugh Linehan to look back on the week in politics:· Sinn Féin’s Planning for Constitutional Change Bill, which obliges the Government to draft and publish a G...

10 Jul 54min

Germany at a crossroads: football, political frustration and the far right

For Germany, football is often a reflection of the nations’ stability.“When Germany is going well, things are going well on the pitch” Irish Times Berlin correspondent Derek Scally tells the Inside Po...

8 Jul 41min

Nigel Farage resigns triggering by-election

British MP Nigel Farage has resigned as an MP triggering a by-election in the constituency of Clacton-on-Sea which he says he will stand in.It comes amid a row over his financial support, after The Su...

7 Jul 15min

Aughinish Alumina is proving to be a real diplomatic headache

Pat Leahy and Jack Horgan-Jones join Hugh Linehan to look back on the week in politics:· Ireland’s presidency of the Council of the European Union got off to a slightly awkward start at the open...

3 Jul 1h 1min

How the duplicitous double life of Jeffrey Donaldson threatens the future of unionism

Hugh Linehan is joined by Alex Kane to discuss the double life of disgraced politician Jeffrey Donaldosn and its broader impact on the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) as well as Ulster unionism overal...

1 Jul 38min