The Last Word with Matt Cooper

Former Met Éireann forecaster Joanna Donnelly rules herself out of running for President of Ireland while MMA fighter Conor McGregor formally seeks nomination; the cost of Dublin parking permits increases fourfold; & counterfeit Labubus are seized over safety concerns.

Larry Donnelly and Emily Keegan join The Last Word to discuss the week's trending stories.

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Minister for Arts, Culture and Sport Patrick O'Donovan has accused hoteliers of "robbing people up to their eyeballs" and has warned the industry that a promised cut in the hospitality VAT rate in October's Budget is not guaranteed.

Paul Gallagher, chief executive of the Irish Hotels Federation, and Eoghan Corry, travel journalist with travelextra.ie, join The Last Word to discuss the Minister's claim that hotels are price gouging consumers.

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Nick Ferrari, Presenter of Nick Ferrari At Breakfast on LBC, discussed the arrest of writer Graham Linehan on suspicion of inciting violence with X posts and his court appearance on separate harassment allegation.

He also explained the impetus behind the Raise The Colours campaign in the UK that has seen the flying of Union Jacks and St George's Crosses around the country.

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Tech journalist Andy O’Donoghue joined Matt on Thursday’s The Last Word to talk through all the best health and fitness tech that’s on the market.

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New research has found that dark coloured cars can make streets noticeably hotter and that the effect, when multiplied, can shift air temperatures in neighbourhoods and cities.

John Gibbons joins The Last Word to discuss this and more climate news including podcaster Joe Rogan's claim that the earth is cooling.

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Myles O'Reilly, musician and filmmaker, spoke to Matt about working with President Michael D Higgins on his spoken-word album, Against All Certainty.

He also discussed his favourite music, films, TV shows and books that have influenced his own work and life.

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Norma Foley, Minister for Children, Disability and Equality, outlined the newly launched National Human Rights Strategy For Disabled People 2025-2030.

The minister also addressed the case a young boy in Donabate, missing, presumed dead.Tulsa had previously engaged with the boy and his family.

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Research conducted by the Irish-owned network of financial advisers Ask Acorn has found that the average Irish woman’s pension pot is 40% lower than a man.

While one in four men have no retirement savings, the figure rises to more than a third for women in Ireland.

Charlie Weston, Personal Finance Editor with the Irish Independent, spoke to Matt on Wednesday’s show.

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Cal Thomas and Marion McKeone join The Last Word to discuss the latest news from the United States, including swirling rumours about Donald Trump's health.

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It’s looking increasingly likely that there will be a contest within Fianna Fáil ahead of the presidential election as both MEP Billy Kelleher and former Dublin Gaelic football manager Jim Gavin gather support from inside the party.

Mr. Kelleher joined Daniel McConnell on The Last Word to discuss why he thinks he’d be the best candidate for the job.

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Irish actor Liam Cunningham joined Matt as he returned to Ireland from Barcelona where he supported the launch of the Global Sumud Flotilla of 50 vessels.

He explained what aid is being carried by the flotilla, and what his meetings with Greta Thunberg have been like.

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Sarah Slattery from thetravelexpert.ie joins The Last Word to discuss the best holiday destinations for those looking for some winter sun.

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Pat Kenny is moving to the weekends on Newstalk and Claire Byrne is taking his morning slot.

Jim Gavin is to seek the Fianna Fáil Presidential nomination according to the party's director of elections, Minister Jack Chambers.

To discuss the day's news, and other trending stories from the week, Matt was joined by Lise Hand and Joe O'Shea.

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A new import tax on small packages sent to the United States has come into effect which means that people in the US who receive packages worth over €85 will now have to pay a 15% import tax.

Garrett Bridgeman, managing director of An Post Commerce, joins The Last Word to discuss how they are facilitating the change and what Irish customers must do when sending parcels to the US.

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Irish filmmaker and undersea cameraman Ken O'Sullivan has spent the last two decades documenting the lives of dolphins off the coast of Ireland.

He joins The Last Word to discuss his new documentary 'Dolphins: Wonders of the Ocean' which will soon air on RTÉ.

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Manchester United's woes continued on Wednesday night after League Two side Grimsby Town knocked Ruben Amorim's side out of the Carabao Cup.

After a defeat and a draw in their opening Premier League fixtures against Arsenal and Fulham respectively, is the pressure already building on United to get a result against Burnley this weekend?

Miguel Delaney, Chief Football Writer with the Independent, spoke to Matt on Thursday's The Last Word.

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This week on The Last Word on the Environment Matt is joined by founder and editor of ClimateChange.ie John Gibbons to discuss the week's biggest environmental news.

This week they discuss the presence of Asian Hornets in Ireland growing, how Climate Change is making Wild Fires 22% more intense and more.

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Andy O'Donoghue joins The Last Word to discuss the latest range of Google Pixel phones which include some extraordinary new features powered by artificial intelligence.

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Róise Goan, CEO and Artistic Director of the Dublin Theatre Festival was the latest inductee into the Culture Club where she discussed her favourite music, film, TV, books and of course, theatre.

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Chair of the Consultants’ Committee of the Irish Medical Council Professor Matthew Sadlier has warned that beauty influencers pushing products and unobtainable standards are becoming as dangerous for young women as Andrew Tate is for young men.

Matt caught up with Professor Sadlier about these dangers and the impact he is seeing them have on young women presenting with eating disorders and other mental illnesses.

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College course points have increased once again across all the major universities. With the first round of CAO offers out today, just over 50% of students got their first choice on their CAO.

After the most CAO applications ever, Matt was joined by the Union of Students in Ireland's Daniel Walsh and Eoin Houlihan, Guidance Counsellor with the Institute of Guidance Counsellors Ireland to discuss what this means for students and what are the biggest issues facing Higher Education now.

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Personal Finance Editor with the Irish Independent Charlie Weston is back with Matt to discuss all your finance queries

On this week Charlie talks us through why it is important to challenge your insurer on your premiums amid ongoing price hikes across some of Ireland's biggest insurance providers.

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Dee Reddy and Dave Hanratty had the latest music news including the engagement of Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce.

They had an extensive preview of the biggest ever Electric Picnic, taking place in Stradbally, Co Laois.

In this week's The Last Word on the US, Will O'Callaghan talks to Marion McKeone and Cal Thomas about President Donald Trump's new order to remove the Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook, his plans for future National Guard deployments and a potential future meeting between Trump and Kim Jong Un.

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206 former EU and national ambassadors and former senior EU officials, have signed a letter urging the EU to take action against Israel over the violence in Gaza following the official confirmation of Famine in the strip.

Also today, thousands of activists have joined hostage families for what they’re calling “a day of disruption” calling for an immediate return of the hostages held by Hamas.

Will O'Callaghan is joined by Europe Correspondent for EuroNews Shona Murray and Feature Story Reporter in Tel Aviv Blake Shifton to discuss all the latest,

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The Business Post's Ian Guider joins Will O'Callaghan to discuss the latest Business News.

On this episode they discuss the government's newly announced supports for business that will be affected by Donald Trump's Tariffs and the new agreement between the Advertising Standards Authority and the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission which allows them to share the details of influencers who are not complying with advertising rules.

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Former Dublin GAA manager Jim Gavin, who led Dublin to a historic five in a row, is the latest speculated candidate in the presidential election.

With only Catherine Connolly formally confirmed as a candidate and the election rapidly approaching, Will O'Callaghan spoke to Editor of the Business Post Danny McConnell and Political Correspondent Tabitha Monahan about all the latest candidate news.

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Sarah Slattery from TheTravelExpert.ie returned to The Last Word on Monday to highlight some of the best travel deals available to you if you're planning a winter break this year.

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Pioneer of electronic music Gary Numan spoke to Matt about his extensive career in music and his new tour for the 45th anniversary of his album Telekon.

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Donald Trump claims that he is a grass expert as the owner of several golf courses, Mark Zuckerberg has been buying up houses in Palo Alto for triple their market price and Denmark has abolished VAT on books to stop a 'reading crisis'.

Matt is joined by US correspondent with The Business Post Marione McKeone and host of No Encores Podcast Dave Hanratty to discuss this week's trending stories.

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The class of 2025 has been awarded fewer top grades as grade deflation is introduced for the first time since the 2020 inflation.

The proportion of H1s is down by 2.6% and  O1s down by 2.1% compared to last year. Questions are now being asked about what this will mean for CAO offers next week.

Matt was joined by Irish Times Education Columnist and Guidance Counsellor Brian Mooney and President of Teacher Union Ireland Anthony Quinn to discuss the results

Joining Matt this week for The Last Word On The Environment is Environmental and Climate Change Researcher Sadhbh O’Neill.

They discuss the more than 40,000 fish that have been killed in the River Blackwater in Cork, how wildfire smoke is more dangerous than previously thought and how Donald Trump is reducing tax subsidies for wind and solar energy initiatives.

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Co-producer of the Netflix documentary on the same case, Brian Carroll sits down with Matt to discuss his new book A Deadly Marriage.

In his book he reveals new details about the murder of Jason Corbett by his wife Molly Martens and her father, Thomas.

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Jennifer Carroll MacNeill, Minister for Health, spoke to Matt about the roll out of the RSV immunisation programme for children.

The minister also addressed the controversy surrounding continued waiting times for children needing scoliosis surgery and delays with the completion of the National Children's Hospital.

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Andy O'Donoghue joins Matt to run through all of the Back to College Tech essentials and chats about the best practice for AI use by students.

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Actor Frank Blake is the latest guest to be inducted into the Culture Club!

He joins The Last Word to discuss his favourite music, movies, TV and more.

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Former First Minister Nicola Sturgeon joined Matt to discuss life after politics, her hopes for an independent Scotland, her meetings with Queen Elizabeth and her new book, Frankly.

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New figures have shown that people aged over 50 are the biggest group seeking personal insolvency solutions in Ireland.

Mitchell O’Brien of IRS Ireland found that most of his insolvent clients are over 50, and many are nearing retirement age.

Charlie Weston, Personal Finance Editor with the Irish Independent, spoke to The Last Word on Wednesday.

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Ireland didn't make the cut for the annual ranking of the world's richest countries published by The Economist magazine because it is not "truly rich".

Ian Guider, columnist with the Business Post, joins The Last Word to discuss whether Ireland’s wealth ranking is a true measure and more of the latest business news.

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European leaders went on the charm offensive in their visit to the White House with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy as they sought to ensure that US President Donald Trump's doesn't bow to Russia in an attempt to end the war in Ukraine.

On The Last Word, Marion McKeone and Cal Thomas are joined by Edward Burke, lecturer in war studies at UCD, to discuss where things stand between Trump, Ukraine, Europe and Russia after the White House summit.

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