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The European Court of Human Rights has rejected a case brought by a Northern Irish gay rights activist, who claims a bakery discriminated against him by refusing to create a cake with a message supporting gay marriage, as inadmissable. Gareth Lee ordered a cake in May 2014 from Ashers Bakery located in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. He requested the cake bear the message “support gay marriage,” a message to which the owners, the McArthurs, objected on account of their Christian faith. The Supreme Court of the United Kingdom had reached a unanimous verdict in favor of the McArthurs in 2018,...

Skyrocketing gas prices are sparking major concerns in the UK, with households bracing for higher bills and food prices. The energy crisis has already hit millions of Brits, but is set to hit more still. The UK is highly dependent on consumer spending to generate output, indicating the economy could still be in the mire heading into the spring. A wave of concern over the swelling cost of living is sweeping across Britain. While households are bracing for higher tax bills and are already being stung by food prices leaping, it is swelling energy costs that will hit hardest in...

Dublin, Ireland, Jan 4, 2022 / 12:00 pm (CNA). Ireland is preparing to follow France in offering free contraception to women under 25 years of age. The French government introduced the measure on Jan. 1, while the Irish authorities have promised to make contraception free for women aged between 17 and 25 years from August. French officials said that the change would apply to three million young women out of a population of 67.4 million people. Contraception is already free for minors (under 18s). Along with Sweden, France has the highest total fertility rate of the 27 member states of...

The Government decision to introduce minimum unit pricing on alcohol this week has been welcomed by Alcohol Action Ireland. The new law will largely affect alcohol sold in off-licenses, shops and supermarkets. For that past decade, the Government has been seeking to bring in minimum unit pricing as part of a number of measures to help reduce the harm caused by excessive alcohol consumption. The aim is to change dangerous patterns of alcohol behavior particularly amongst young drinkers, who are buying cheap alcohol before they go out in what is known as pre-drinking. This alcohol will now be more expensive...

There is an opportunity to move with me as never before in this new year for I am bringing in the sheaths as I burn off the dross and as I begin this new harvest of souls, truly you shall see the ease and favor I have bestowed upon you as I did on the day of pentecost for my tongues of fire shall now be your friend and companion yet one in spirit and truth for truly this is the fire of my breath upon my children to bring in those lost and stolen by the enemy returning now...

An Irishman has been arrested for breaking into the Romanian Presidential Palace after 'mistaking it for his hotel' while drunk during a night out in Bucharest. The Irish citizen reached the third floor of the building in a breach that has ignited a review into the security of the People's House. .. He allegedly thought the Palace of the Parliament was his hotel after he returned from a night out in the Romanian capital.... When quizzed by police, he was unable to remember how he broke in. ...

The eco-extremists at the liberal Guardian should realize by now that the internet is forever. The outlet freaked out over 17 years ago about a frosty future thanks to a ridiculously inaccurate Pentagon prediction. The Guardian published a report in 2004 sounding the alarm bells over a “secret report, suppressed by US defence chiefs” and obtained by sister newspaper The Observer. Here was the harrowing message, according to The Guardian: “[M]ajor European cities will be sunk beneath rising seas as Britain is plunged into a ‘Siberian’ climate by 2020.”

Irish, Scots and Welsh not Celts - scientists September 09 2004 at 08:15PM Dublin - Celtic nations like Ireland and Scotland have more in common with the Portuguese and Spanish than with "Celts" - the name commonly used for a group of people from ancient Alpine Europe, scientists say. "There is a received wisdom that the origin of the people of these islands lie in invasions or migrations... but the affinities don't point eastwards to a shared origin," said Daniel Bradley, co-author of a genetic study into Celtic origins. Early historians believed the Celts - thought to have come from...

The biggest domestic Irish companies, as well as major multinationals, would face a new minimum corporate tax rate of 15 percent, under plans to be put forward by the European Commission on Wednesday. The move comes in a draft directive to be published in Brussels to mandate the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) plan for a minimum corporate tax rate across the Union.Earlier this week the OECD published detailed proposals for its proposed minimum effective corporate tax rate of 15 percent, to apply to multinationals with a turnover of over €750 million. Ireland had earlier signed up to...

The winter solstice sunrise will stream live this year from inside the passage tomb of Newgrange. The winter solstice is an astronomical phenomenon marking the shortest day and the longest night of the year, occurring on December 21st or 22nd in the Northern Hemisphere. At sunrise on the shortest day of the year, for 17 minutes, direct sunlight can enter the Newgrange monument to illuminate the chamber of the Stone Age tomb through a small opening above its entrance known as the ‘roof box’. With the chamber currently closed to the public in light of Covid-19, the event can be...

"An attempt by the U.N. Security Council to pass what would have been the first-ever standalone resolution linking climate change and the council’s primary mandate of maintaining international peace and security was torpedoed Monday by Russia. Russia used its veto power to kill the resolution drafted by Ireland and Niger. India also voted “no” while China abstained. ..."

Fear of COVID-19 and weakened faith were most frequently cited as reasons for staying away from Mass.(LifeSiteNews) – A recent survey shows that more than half of Ireland’s former Mass-goers have chosen not to return largely due to fear of COVID-19 and weakened faith. A November 2021 Amárach Research survey of Irish Catholics found that more than 53 percent of those who “identified as Mass-goers” before COVID-19 have not been going to Mass since. Of those who have chosen not to go back to Mass, 61 percent said they are staying away because of fear of COVID-19. This was the...

A Senator in Ireland has said that the government should consider banning those without a vaccine passport from public transportation and supermarkets, in one of the most extreme Covid proposals to date. “Why not supermarkets? Why not public transport?” Senator Gerry Horkan asked. “I know it is difficult to police some of these things, but really, if you want to participate in society, you need to be vaccinated.” While addressing the senate, Horkan said: “Here we are on 23rd November and the month of December is traditionally the most important for the licensed trade and hospitality business, at between 2.5...

A young woman who helped her boyfriend to target and murder an Irishman with the horrific drug devil’s breath has had her appeal application rejected by an English court. In March, Diana Cristea, 20, was convicted of helping her boyfriend Joel Osei kill Adrian Murphy in 2019 with an overdose of scopolamine. Osei targeted the 43-year-old through the gay dating app Grindr so they could drain his bank accounts and kill him.

The Labour Party in Ireland has adopted a policy to support making abortion legal up until birth without any restriction. The policy was announced and voted through last Saturday 13 November, during their annual party conference. Since the repeal of the Eighth Amendment in 2018, abortion has been legal on demand up until 12 weeks of pregnancy. In addition to making abortion legal up until birth, Labour’s new policy seeks to remove the current 3-day waiting period between initial consultation and abortion, as well as remove the right of medical professionals to conscientiously refuse to be involved in abortion. Ellen...

Truck drivers say they understand commuters’ frustrations this morning but say their voices must be heard as they made their way to the center of Dublin. The protestors began arriving at Leinster House to voice their concerns about rising fuels prices and the cost this is having on their businesses. Lorries are currently parked at Merrion Square and on Dawson Street, while Kildare Street has been closed off by Gardaí. There were disruptions on routes into and around the city earlier this morning, and now in the Kildare Street area, as trucks start to park up near the Dáil. Gardaí...

Met Éireann has said parts of the country could see some showers of sleet or snow later this week. Lowest temperatures are expected to drop towards the freezing point on Wednesday night, with a lowest temperature of –1°C forecast on Thursday. Friday will be cold with some showers possibly turning to sleet in the evening. Highest temperatures will be between just 7°C and 9°C with an added wind chill factor. Some showers of sleet or snow are likely over the north and west, with lowest temperatures of 0°C to 4°C. Sleet and snow remains possible over high ground in the...

AP News calls them "far-right," but tens of thousands of freedom-loving people marched against new tyrannical public health measures, such as partial and full lockdowns and health passports and mandatory vaccinations, across Europe. Demonstrations against new virus restrictions were observed in Austria, Croatia, Italy, Northern Ireland, the UK, France, Germany, and the Netherlands. Outside of Europe, protesters were seen in several cities across Canada, Australia, Japan, and even the US. Some marked Saturday as part of a "Worldwide Freedom" rally to protest COVID-19 restrictions and vaccine mandates.Some of the most intense rallies, which turned into riots, were in the port...

Plans to build a bridge or tunnel between Scotland and Northern Ireland have been ruled out due to forecasted costs and engineering challenges. A study examining if such a project was possible is expected to advise against proceeding with any proposals when it is released next week. The BBC understands the government will agree with the report's recommendation. The Telegraph first reported that transport expert Sir Peter Hendy, who was asked by the government to examine connections between the different parts of the UK, had concluded the project was not currently viable. A government source said Sir Peter had examined...

There is a new midnight curfew in Ireland because of a sharp spike in Covid-19 cases. This is happening even as the country’s government is bragging about 93% of the adult population being “fully vaccinated.”But here’s where it gets weird. They’re claiming that out of 600 hospitalized for Covid, roughly “half” of them are “unvaccinated.” This does not jibe with reports from the ground where hospitals are reporting the vast majority of hospitalized are fully vaccinated. In fact, a local news report that was quickly scrubbed claimed that out of four hospitals contacted, none of them confirmed the “roughly half”...