Newstalk Breakfast

Psychotherapist and author Stella O’Malley joins Newstalk Breakfast with advice for students and parents ahead of the first day of the 2025 Leaving Cert. Listen here.

Claire Dunne, CEO of the Irish Travel Agents Association, joins Newstalk Breakfast to discuss why European airlines are calling for relaxation on compensation rules for flight delays. Listen here.

Vincent McAvinney, London-based journalist, joins Newstalk Breakfast as German police prepare to launch a fresh search in Portugal in connection with the disappearance of Madeleine McCann. Listen here.

Friday Riff: Gardai on buses is it needed? Ciara and Jonathan discussed this morning.

Parental intuition can predict child’s serious illness before doctors. That’s according to new research published in the journal Lancet Child and Adolescent Health. We discuss these findings with  Monaghan Based GP Illona Duffy.

Festival season Kicks off our own Ciara Treacy talks all things festival for 2025.

This weekend, Gardaí will board buses across Dublin as part of a commitment to improve safety on public transport, after anti-social incidents have more than doubled in the last five years.     We discuss this and more with Blake Boland, Spokesperson for Dublin Bus. 

The White House has said that Israel had accepted US President Donald Trump's proposal for a Gaza ceasefire, while discussions are continuing with Hamas.   Joining us for more on this is Alistair Bunkall Sky News Middle East Correspondent.  

Ireland will need specialised rehabilitation clinics and detox services to deal with phone addiction within the next five years. That’s according to Professor Colin O’Gara, Addiction Psychiatrist at St John of Gods Hospital and Clinical Professor of Psychiatry at UCD .

Tánaiste Simon Harris is set to contact the Israeli government over what he termed as an "utterly unacceptable" attack on Irish peacekeeping troops in southern Lebanon.   Joining us to discuss this is Cathal Berry Independent TD and Former Army Ranger.

Kinahan associate Sean McGovern has been charged with murder and directing organised crime at the Special Criminal Court, after he was extradited from the United Arab Emirates. We get the latest on this with Fank Greaney, Newstalk’s Courts Correspondent .  

Ireland’s largest gardening festival, Bloom kicks off today in the Phoenix Park.    This year, Bloom will launch ‘A Taste of Bloom, curated by Neven’, a very special new dining experience planned for this year’s festival in collaboration with Chef Proprietor of McNean House, Neven Maguire. Neven chatted to Newstalk Breakfast this morning.

The head of UNWRA, the United Nations relief and works agency for Palestine has said the "clock is ticking towards famine" in Gaza as he warned that the new US-backed aid distribution model is a waste of resources and a distraction from "atrocities".   We heard from Jonathan Fowler, Spokesperson with UNWRA. 

Minister for Public Expenditure, Jack Chambers is launching public consultation on the National Development Plan Review today. Minister Chambers spoke to Shane this morning.

“The aggressive speed and silence of cyclists is a cultural problem that needs tackling in Ireland.”  Those are the words of Irish Times columnist Kathy Sheridan, and we got reaction to this with barrister, columnist and cyclist Brenda Power .

Gardaí investigating the suspected murder of Fiona Pender conducted a search in Laois overnight in a bid to find her remains. Gearoid Keegan, Deputy Editor of the Tullamore Tribune.

ISME have called for a ‘reset’ of national minimum wage in pre-budget submission. To discuss this further Ciara spoke to ISME Chair and Centra Owner in Sligo, Finbar Filan .

Kinahan cartel boss Sean McGovern is on his way back to Ireland from Dubai to face charges for murder and gangland crime. Mick O’Toole, Crime and Defence Editor with The Irish Daily Star and The Irish Mirror brings us the latest on this story.

A federal trade court on Wednesday blocked Donald Trump from imposing sweeping tariffs on imports under an emergency-powers law. We discuss further with David Smith, Washington Bureau Chief with The Guardian .

Minister for Justice, Jim O’Callaghan took to his feet in the Dáil yesterday to offer a public apology to the family of Shane O’Farrell, who was killed in a hit-and-run in 2011. We spoke to Shane's mother Lucia O’Farrell. 

Ireland is now projected to fall far short of its 2030 targets – that’s according to the latest Environmental Protection Agency report. We discuss the findings with Dr Eimear Cotter, Director at the Office of evidence and Assessment at the EPA.

Cocaine is the main drug of concern in 40% of all treatment cases, according to the latest data from the Health Research Board with the number of women receiving treatment for cocaine use soaring by 426% since 2017.     Jo-hanna Ivers, Professor in Addiction at the School of Medicine at Trinity College Dublin discussed these findings with Ciara this morning. 

Taking husbands surname any issue with it? Shane and Ciara discussed this morning.

A 53-year-old man remains in police custody suspected of attempted murder and drug driving after a car ploughed into a crowd of fans celebrating Liverpool's Premier League title win.  Graham Wettone, Retired Metropolitan police with 30 years of experience and author spoke to Newstalk Breakfast with more on it.

The Trump administration has ordered US embassies to stop scheduling interview for student visas, including the J1, as it considers stricter vetting of applicants' social-media profiles.    To get the latest on this Ciara spoke to David Smith, Washington Bureau Chief, The Guardian .