Two years ago, Enda Kenny and Eamon Gilmore became Taoiseach and Tanaiste. On the day, an ebullient Enda Kenny announced that he was entering into “a covenant with the Irish people”. Last Wednesday, the Taoiseach and Tanaiste published a progress report on the implementation of that “covenant”. It was, unsurprisingly, covered in gold stars which

HARDLY a day passes without calls from people worried by how the property tax will affect them. They are struggling to pay mortgages; battling negative equity; frustrated by how much they paid in stamp duty; or are beset by all three problems. Their stories are harrowing but, as I have been discovering, they are not