Viral ‘hugging grandparents’ ad: did Jim O’Callaghan need to intervene?

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Pat Leahy and Sarah Burns join Hugh Linehan to look back on the week in politics:

The Dáil was dominated this week by debate over the Government’s proposal to remove the triple lock on overseas deployments. It’s a substantial political row with contradictions and ironies on both sides of the argument.

The attention of terminally online people all over the world was drawn to Ireland this week when an ad campaign from the Dublin Rape Crisis Centre went viral. The ad, part of a campaign “aimed at informing, educating and engaging the public about all forms of consent”, depicted a girl’s discomfort at receiving a hug from her grandparents. Minister for Justice Jim O’Callaghan swiftly denounced it. Did he need to?

Minister O’Callaghan is at the centre of this week’s other big story: the ongoing battle between the State and the legal profession over fees. As the impact of the dispute is felt more and more within the courts, the stakes for O’Callaghan are high.

Plus the panelists pick their favourite Irish Times articles of the week including Kathy Sheridan on the enduring role of the Catholic funeral, Justine McCarthy on Andy Burnham “declaring war” on inconsiderate commuters and Fintan O’Toole on antisemitism.