Ireland gears up for EU presidency and Andy Burnham sweeps Makerfield byelection

Jack Horgan-Jones and Mark Paul join Harry McGee to look back on the week in politics:·       Taoiseach Micheál Martin is in Brussels for the EU summit this week, also in attendance is Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskiy who is pushing for serious peace negotiations with Russia. Will Vladimir Putin come to the negotiation table? And could Ukraine’s EU membership be fast-tracked during Ireland’s upcoming EU presidency? ·       Security, competitiveness and the EU budget are some of the issues that will come into focus as Ireland becomes a deal maker and parks parochial affairs for the duration of its six-month presidency starting July 1st.·       And with Andy Burnham justifying the hype by crushing Nigel Farage’s Reform UK in the Makerfield byelection, will prime minister Keir Starmer go quietly or hang around for a leadership battle he stands little chance of winning?Plus, the panel picks their favourite Irish Times pieces of the week:Produced by John Casey with JJ Vernon on sound.Would you like to receive daily insights into world events delivered to your inbox? Sign up for Denis Staunton's Global Briefing newsletter here: irishtimes.com/newsletters/global-briefing/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.