TV3 political editor Ursula Halligan will be stepping down from her position at the end of August this year.

In her time as a reporter for 3News, Halligan has covered four general elections and the careers of four Taoisigh.

Ursula has made a valuable contribution to TV3 over the past 18 years and was always an independent voice in politics, going beyond the spin and hype to give our viewers the real story

An award-winning reporter, Halligan’s work made a “valuable contribution” to the news station, said Mick McCaffrey, Head of 3News.

“Ursula has made a valuable contribution to TV3 over the past 18 years and was always an independent voice in politics, going beyond the spin and hype to give our viewers the real story of what was happening at Leinster House,” McCaffrey said in The Independent.

“She was respected across all political parties for her insights and independence. We would like to thank Ursula for her dedicated service and wish her the very best for the future.”

Halligan’s career began in print journalism with the Sunday Tribune before holding a position with RTE News and subsequently joining TV3 in 2000 where she remained until 2017.

Same-Sex Marriage

Halligan had a significant role in the marriage equality campaign leading up to the same-sex marriage referendum in 2015, for which she was awarded the French National Order of Merit and Journalist of the Year at The GALAs.

One week before the referendum, in a column in the Irish Times, Halligan came out publicly.

“Emotionally, I have been in a prison since the age of 17; a prison where I lived a half-life, repressing an essential part of my humanity, the expression of my deepest self; my instinct to love.”

I believe a Yes vote is the most Christian thing to do

In the column she disclosed the longterm trauma that hiding her sexuality for nearly forty years had on her mental wellbeing and appealed to religious people across the nation to vote Yes.

“As a person of faith and a Catholic,” she wrote, “I believe a Yes vote is the most Christian thing to do. I believe the glory of God is the human being fully alive and that this includes people who are gay.”

The GCN Team would like to take this opportunity to wish Ursula the very best in her future endeavours, whatever they may be.