Public consultation showed near universal opposition to government plans for capping legal fees in planning and environmental cases.
Our latest update:
www.thestory.ie/2026/04/21/p...
Government plans to cap legal fees in planning and environmental cases were opposed by 98 percent of more than 1,400 respondents to a public consultation.
A review of responses said changes could weaken “fundamental legal safeguards” for taking cases:
www.thestory.ie/2026/04/21/p...
Government concerns that developers were ‘commencing’ housing developments to take advantage of waivers without concrete plans for completing homes.
Our latest set of records:
www.thestory.ie/2026/04/17/g...
Coming next month. A project I’ve been working on in the background over the past year.
Based on more than two decades of experience accessing information, it’s aimed at students, teachers, journalists and anyone planning to file requests with public bodies.
More details soon.
Heritage Council warns climate change already damaging historic sites as €2.3m register of landmarks at most risk proposed.
Our latest set of records available online at:
www.thestory.ie/2026/04/14/h...
Revenue Commissioners wrote off more than €270 million in unpaid taxes last year, a sharp climb of more than 70% on 2024 figures.
The surge in write-offs was driven mainly by businesses going bust and fallout from tax ‘warehousing’ during COVID-19.
www.thestory.ie/2026/04/10/m...
More than €430 million worth of tax written off by Revenue Commissioners over past two years.
Latest FOI data from us online at:
www.thestory.ie/2026/04/10/m...
HSE pays over €1 million per patient per year for specialised psychiatric treatment abroad.
Our latest set of records:
www.thestory.ie/2026/04/03/h...
Undetected leak in old courthouse sees Courts Service hit with excess water charges of over €110,000.
Our latest set of records available at:
www.thestory.ie/2026/04/01/u...
More than 100 complaints made to the Data Protection Commission (DPC) remain unresolved more than five years after they were lodged.
The DPC said there were 111 cases dating from May 2018 to 2020 that have still not been finalised.
www.thestory.ie/2026/03/27/d...
Data Protection Commission says 111 complaints that are at least five years old are still unresolved.
Our latest set of FOI records:
www.thestory.ie/2026/03/27/d...
Gardaí were paid more than €189 million in overtime last year with some members cashing in to the tune of more than €50,000 each.
One inspector was able to earn an extra €65,008 on top of their ordinary salary, according to FOI records.
www.thestory.ie/2026/03/25/b...
Bill of €189 million for overtime for members of An Garda last year with one inspector earning €65,000 in extra pay.
Our latest set of records now online at:
www.thestory.ie/2026/03/25/b...
More than €17 million worth of welfare overpayments to people no longer resident in the State were uncovered over the past two years.
During the same period, around €8.2 million in such payments was recouped.
www.thestory.ie/2026/03/20/d...
Department identifies €17m in welfare overpayments to people absent from the State over past two years with €8.2m recovered.
Our latest set of FOI records:
www.thestory.ie/2026/03/20/d...
Officials warned mortgage interest relief scheme had no policy rationale, favoured higher income people, and should be ended – Finance Minister instead extended it for two years.
Our latest set of FOI records online at:
www.thestory.ie/2026/03/18/o...
Cannabis grow houses were illegally hooked up to electricity supplies 24 times over past two years at a cost of at least half a million euro.
Criminals tapped into ESB Networks to cultivate drugs 18 times in 2024, burning through around 1.8 million kWh.
www.thestory.ie/2026/03/13/c...
Cannabis grow houses tapped illegal electricity supplies worth more than half a million euro.
Our latest set of FOI records:
www.thestory.ie/2026/03/13/c...
Over €600,000 a year in old pound banknotes and coins still being swapped decades after introduction of euro.
Latest set of FOI records online at:
www.thestory.ie/2026/03/10/o...
Portuguese granite, underground utilities, and hopelessly optimistic cost projections on park entrance project which quadrupled in cost to over €800,000.
Our latest set of records available at:
www.thestory.ie/2026/03/06/p...
Minister Jack Chambers suggested legal firms be banned from taking environmental cases on a ‘no foal, no fee’ basis.
Mr Chambers said “radical options” needed to be considered to cut down legal challenges even as number of judicial reviews was falling:
www.thestory.ie/2026/03/04/m...
Minister wanted ban on ‘no foal, no fee’ legal work that could limit the right of ordinary citizens to take environmental cases to court.
Our latest FOI records now online at:
www.thestory.ie/2026/03/04/m...
Asylum-related judicial reviews triple amid increased deportations and faster decisions in international protection applications.
Our latest set of FOI records available at:
www.thestory.ie/2026/02/24/a...
Judicial reviews in international protection cases have tripled in three years, new data released under FOI shows.
Legal costs have also risen sharply amid faster decision-making and an increasing number of deportations:
www.thestory.ie/2026/02/24/a...
Chances of being granted an Irish visa below 10 percent for some countries as 63,000 refused over past two years.
Our latest records online at:
www.thestory.ie/2026/02/20/c...
Nearly 63,000 people were refused visas for travel to Ireland over past two years with citizens of some countries facing rejection rates above 90%.
More than 321,000 visa applications were granted in 2024 and 2025, according to figures released after an FOI appeal:
www.thestory.ie/2026/02/20/c...
Irish jails were so overcrowded that management warned they mightn't be able to take anyone else or produce people at court.
Irish Prison Service said country’s main remand prison was at 125% capacity with room for three more people - on mattresses:
www.thestory.ie/2026/02/17/t...
Three mattresses left at country’s main remand jail as record overcrowding left prisons operating at 120% capacity.
Our latest set of records now available at:
www.thestory.ie/2026/02/17/t...
Confidential demographic paper warns Ireland faces labour “conundrum” as workforce ages and migration pressures grow.
Our latest set of records available at:
www.thestory.ie/2026/02/13/c...
Confidential government paper says Ireland may require significantly higher migration levels in coming decades to sustain its workforce and public services.
Warns of importance of maintaining "social licence" as population ages and needs support:
www.thestory.ie/2026/02/13/c...