Ursula Halligan

Ursula Halligan
Ursula Halligan at the RDS in 2009
Nationality	Irish
Occupation	Journalist
Notable credit(s)	RTÉ Current Affairs TV3 News

Ursula Halligan is the political editor of Ireland's main independent television station, TV3.

Biography

A former journalist with RTÉ News and Current Affairs, she joined TV3 at its inception. She previously worked at the Sunday Tribune and Vincent Browne's Magill magazine. She presented The Political Party, its main weekend current affairs programme until the show was axed as part of wider cutbacks due to the station's financial situation, in March 2009.^[1] Halligan grew up in Templeogue, Dublin. Her brother, Professor Aidan Halligan, is director of education at University College London Hospitals and chief of safety at Brighton and Sussex University Hospitals trust.

Controversies

Brian Lenihan

In December 2009, Halligan controversially disclosed the fact that the then Minister for Finance Brian Lenihan, Jnr had been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. She was criticized by the then Taoiseach Brian Cowen, senior government members and the Sunday Independent.^[2] However she did get support from many publications and journalists including the political bi-weekly Village magazine, Ger Colleran, editor of the Irish Daily Star tabloid and the Phoenix magazine, who stated that "If a report of the finance minister facing a serious illness while simultaneously grappling with the biggest financial crisis in the history of the state is not in the public interest then nothing is".^[3]

Enda Kenny

In July 2012, Halligan was accused of assaulting the Taoiseach, Enda Kenny, at an event where Kenny was asked about his opposition to same-sex marriage. Witnesses, and there were plenty including at least 20 journalists and RTÉ television cameras, said one of Kenny's political advisers "barged" across Halligan.^[4]

References