Highlights from Newstalk Breakfast

Dublin City Council are set to explore a switch from bags to bins in a bid to reduce litter on the streets. We get more details from  Donna Cooney, Green Party Councillor for Clontarf.

Concerns of local parents have been “overlooked” when it comes to secondary school places. That’s according to Dublin Mother Jane Toolan who spoke Ciara this morning on the show.

Flowers – the go to gift for Valentines Day but is it the right gift or just the easy way out?  You might be wondering what you should, hastily, get your partner on the way home from work today We asked Lulu O'Sullivan, Founder of Giftsdirect.com are flowers a good gift? 

Taoiseach Leo Varadkar has told the Dáil that €2.2billion is the maximum allocation for the completion of the National Children's Hospital, adding that the Government "will not be allocating any more". Speaking to Newstalk Breakfast this morning was Dr Brian Turner, Health Economist with Cork University Business School, UCC. 

RTÉ chiefs past and present are preparing to grace the halls of Leinster House to appear before the Oireachtas Media Committee as the public broadcaster’s crisis rumbles on.     Speaking to Newstalk Breakfast ahead of the meeting this morning was Niamh Smyth, Chair of the Oireachtas Media Committee.

Bad news for chocolate lovers! The cocoa has reached a record high, meaning the price of your favourite chocolate bars may take a serious hike.. We spoke to Tara Gartland, Owner of Tara Gartland Chocolate and Pastry Chef.

All Things Considered: Do you celebrate valentines day? Shane and Ciara discuss.

Close to half a million people in Ireland still smoke every day . Today is National No Smoking Day and the Irish pharmacy union are urging people to seek help in their local pharmacy. We were joined on the show by  Tom Murray Treasurer of Irish pharmacy union and community pharmacist from Ramelton in Donegal. 

Food delivery riders in Dublin are set to strike later this evening. Speaking to Shane this morning was  Fiachra Ó Luain, Labour rights’ officer for the English Language Students’ Union of Ireland.

Gardaí are conducting searches a park in Santry, Dublin for missing Icelandic man Jon Jonsson, who went missing in 2019. We get the latest on this with Muiris O’Cearbhaill a Reporter for the Journal. 

Decisive action required to scrap TV licence and deliver sustainable public sector broadcasting and an independent media sector.  That’s the call from Sinn Féin TD for Cork North Central Thomas Gould who spoke to Shane this morning on the show.

Aviva Insurance are warning homeowners and business owners of a fire risk from tumble dryers due to a spike in associated claims.  Speaking to Newstalk Breakfast this morning was Gillian Devereux, Senior Loss Adjuster at Aviva Insurance.

French president Emmanual Macron announced a pilot scheme that would see school uniforms made compulsory across the country if successful. Should Ireland follow suit? Or ditch the uniform altogether? To debate this we heard from Eric Nelligan, Assistant Principal at St Munchins College Limerick and Emma de Souza, Writer & Political Commentator. 

 Minister for Social Protection, Heather Humphreys, is to seek Cabinet approval to extend Child Benefit to 18-year-olds who are in full time education, or who have a disability, from May 1st. Barra Roantree, Director of the MSc in Economic Policy at Trinity College Dublin spoke to Newstalk Breakfast this morning.

All Things Considered: Should child benefit be means tested? Shane and Ciara discussed this morning.

Researchers at the UK Biobank Project have taken a major step towards a blood test that can predict the risk of dementia, more than a decade before the condition is formally diagnosed in patients.   Prof Brian Lawlor, Professor of Old Age Psychiatry and Site Director for the Global Brain Health Institute Trinity College Dublin explained how significant this development is. 

Facial recognition technology is “discriminatory", "unlawful”, “indiscriminate and pervasive surveillance”, says The Irish Council for Civil liberties  Their Surveillance Senior Policy Officer Olga Cronin spoke to Ciara this morning on the show.

Israel is facing growing international pressure over its intention to launch an all-out military assault on the city of Rafah, in the wake of a ferocious hostage rescue operation that killed dozens of Palestinians. Speaking to Newstalk Breakfast this morning was Eylon Levy Israeli Government spokesperson.

Kansas City Chiefs Stole victory in last night's Superbowl but many eyes tuned solely to catch a glimpse of America’s pop princess..  We asked Eileen Coyne, News Correspondent at Irish Independent, why are people so obsessed with Taylor Swift? 

Apple recently released its €3,200 Vision Pro headset.  Is it the future of home entertainment and will it normalise people walking around with VR headsets on?  We discuss with Newstalk’s Technology Correspondent, Jess Kelly.

An increased Garda presence in Dublin, a crackdown on youth offenders, more 24-hour public transport and safe taxi hubs are among proposals made to Government by a business representative group in the wake of a riot that occurred last November. Richard Guiney, CEO of Dublin Town told us what he thinks of these proposals.

Chief executive of the Housing Agency, Bob Jordan has said that house prices must fall, in order to improve the housing crisis.  To debate we heard from John Moran, Former chair of land development agency and also John Cummins, Fine Gael Spokesperson on Housing, Local Government and Heritage.

All Things Considered: Should we get rid of trigger warnings? Shane and Ciara discuss this morning.

1,500 dog attacks have been reported to Gardaí in the past two years Despite this, some local authorities have failed to issue any fines in the past 4 years.  Lynn Boylan, Sinn Fein’s Climate Spokesperson gave her reaction

NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg has warned against talk that "undermines security" after former US president Donald Trump spoke at a rally in South Carolina over the weekend. David Dunn, Professor in International Politics at the University of Birmingham spoke to Shane this morning.