Leo Eric Varadkar is an Irish politician who has served as Taoiseach since December 2022, and previously from June 2017 to June 2020; he also served as Tánaiste from June 2020 to December 2022 and has held a range of other ministerial positions in the Irish government. The leader of Fine Gael from June 2017 to March 2024, he represents the Dublin West constituency, where he has been a TD since May 2007. His political positions have been described as centre-right economically; he has advocated free markets, lower taxes, and welfare reform. On social issues, he has supported successful constitutional referendums to legalise same-sex marriage and to liberalise Ireland's abortion laws.
Simon Harris is an Irish politician who has served as leader of Fine Gael since 2024. Harris has been a minister in the government of Ireland since 2016, serving as Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science since June 2020. He has been a Teachta Dála (TD) for the Wicklow constituency since 2011 and was a Minister of State from 2014 to 2016.
Regina Doherty is an Irish Fine Gael politician who has served as Deputy leader of Seanad Éireann since 2022. She was Leader of the Seanad from 2020 to 2022, and is Leader of Fine Gael in the Seanad since June 2020. She has been a Senator since June 2020, after being nominated by the Taoiseach. She served as Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection from 2017 to 2020 and Government Chief Whip from 2016 to 2017. She was a Teachta Dála (TD) for the Meath East constituency from 2011 to 2020.
Barry Cowen is an Irish Fianna Fáil politician who has been a Teachta Dála (TD) for the Laois–Offaly constituency since the 2020 general election, and previously from 2011 to 2016. From 2016 to 2020, he was a TD for the Offaly constituency. He previously served as Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine from June to July 2020.
The anti-austerity movement in Ireland saw major demonstrations from 2008 to 2015.
The Garda Whistleblower Scandal involved the revelation of corruption and malpractice within Ireland's national police force, the Garda Síochána, and the subsequent mishandling of the complaints that had been made by serving members of the force.
Events during the year 2017 in Ireland.
Events during the year 2019 in Ireland.
Events during the year 2020 in Ireland. As in most of the world, the COVID-19 pandemic dominated events in Ireland during this year.
Detective Garda Colm Horkan was a detective in the Garda Síochána, the national police service of Ireland, who was shot dead by a 43-year-old man in Castlerea, County Roscommon, Ireland on 17 June 2020, while on an anti-crime patrol.
The COVID-19 pandemic in the Republic of Ireland has had far-reaching consequences in the country that go beyond the spread of the disease itself and efforts to quarantine it, including political, educational and sporting implications.
The Oireachtas Golf Society scandal, also known informally as "Golfgate", was a political scandal in Ireland involving past and present members of that country's parliament, the Oireachtas, who attended a gathering of the Oireachtas Golf Society in Clifden, County Galway, on 19 August 2020.
The COVID-19 pandemic has impacted and affected the political system of the Republic of Ireland, causing suspensions of legislative activities and isolation of multiple politicians due to fears of spreading the virus. Several politicians have tested positive for COVID-19 in 2020, 2021 and 2022.
Events during the year 2021 in Ireland. As in most of the world, the COVID-19 pandemic has dominated events in Ireland during this year.
The following is a timeline of the COVID-19 pandemic in the Republic of Ireland in 2021.
Events during the year 2022 in Ireland.
Events during the year 2023 in Ireland.
In response to the COVID-19 pandemic in the Republic of Ireland, the Irish government introduced various public health and economic measures to mitigate its impact.
Protests at several locations in Ireland started in early November 2022 after the development of sites in various parts of the country as temporary refugee shelters by the Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth (DCEDIY), as it attempted to accommodate the influx of 65,000 refugees during 2022. Protests have been held in East Wall, Ballymun, Drimnagh, and elsewhere in Dublin; Fermoy and Mallow in County Cork; Kill, County Kildare; Lismore, County Waterford; Mullingar, County Westmeath; Inch, County Clare; and Rosslare Harbour, County Wexford.
During the COVID-19 pandemic in the Republic of Ireland, numerous protests took place over the government's response.
