The Last Word with Matt Cooper

Eoghan O'Mara Walsh, chief executive of the Irish Tourism Industry Confederation, spoke to Matt about calls for Government for the sector ahead of Budget 2025.To catch the full conversation, press the 'play' button on this page.

Nationally syndicated columnist Cal Thomas and US Correspondent with the Business Post Marion McKeone joined Matt for The Last Word’s weekly US slot where Matt began by asking about the significance of the Pennsylvanian vote in November’s presidential election.Hit the ‘Play’ button on this page to hear the conversation.

Charlie Weston, Personal Finance Editor with the Irish Independent joined Matt to discuss how taxi fares are to rise by 9% in December. Will this lead to more people opting to stay at home instead of going out?Hit the ‘Play’ button on this page to hear the conversation.

Liam Gallagher has hit out at critics of his 'angelic tones', saying that 'imposters' are not welcome at the Oasis reunion shows. John Caddell and Dee Reddy join The Last Word to discuss this as well as news that Justin Timberlake will play two gigs in Ireland next year and more.Catch the full chat by pressing the 'Play' button on this page!

Laura Kennedy joins Matt int eh studio to discuss her new book, Some of Our Parts.As a philosopher and author, Laura takes us through the complexities of the labels we place upon ourself and how we can navigate these.

Driverless taxis have been operating in San Francisco since last August marking a significant milestone in the progress for autonomous vehicles.Elaine Burke, host of the For Tech's Sake podcast, was recently in the city and joins The Last Word to talk about her experience of being a passenger in a driverless car.Catch the full chat by pressing the 'Play' button on this page.

The Government has been slammed for dropping plans for hate speech laws because of a lack of the consensus on the wording.Also, President Michael D Higgins has claimed that a letter he wrote congratulating his Iranian counterpart was leaked by Israel.Daniel McConnell, editor of the Business Post, Alan Shatter, former minister for justice and Fianna Fáil Senator Lisa Chambers join The Last Word to discuss the hate speech legislation and the President’s letter to Iran.President Higgins has also clashed with Taoiseach Simon Harris in relation to immigration and homelessness. Gary Gannon, Social Democrats TD, and Fine Gael Senator Barry Ward join The Last Word to discuss this.Catch the full chat by pressing the ‘Play’ button on this page.

Are you a binge watcher or do you space out your series?This week on the Last Word on TV and Streaming, Elaine and Joe give us the best in TV and streaming to get you through the week.

Sarah Slattery from TheTravelExpert.ie joined Matt for The Last Word’s weekly travel slot, giving you all the best tips and tricks for booking a ski holiday this winter.Hit the ‘Play’ button on this page to hear the chat.

The United Rugby Championship kicks off this weekend with Leinster away to Edinburgh on Friday night, Munster hosting Connacht and Ulster facing Glasgow Warriors on Saturday.Matt spoke to Billy Holland, Liam Toland and Paul Wallace about each province’s ambitions for the season ahead.Hit the ‘Play’ button on this page to hear the chat.

Exploding pagers killing at least 12 people and wounding 3,000 people. This has led to an exchange of strikes between Israel and Hezbollah and growing fears of further escalation.Matt spoke to our foreign correspondent in Beirut, Hannah McCarthy to see how the situation is escalating.

Molly Nic Céile, author of Gaeilge i mo Chroí, joins The Last Word to talk about learning to love the Irish language.Catch the full chat by pressing the 'Play' button on this page!

John Gibbons joins The Last Word to discuss climate change causing the earth to vibrate, life or death for cities should the earth continue to warm and overcoming climate fatalism.Catch the full chat by pressing the 'Play' button on this page!

Tom Clonan, Independent Senator, retired Army Officer and former Lecturer at TU Dublin, joined Mario Rosenstock to give his assessment of this week’s walkie-talkie and pager attacks in Lebanon which left dozens dead and hundreds injured.Hit the ‘Play’ button on this page to hear the conversation.

A study by Maynooth University has suggested that homework tasks of up to 15 minutes can be more beneficial than longer time periods.Mario Rosenstock was joined by Professor Andrew Parnell, Hamilton Professor and Director of the Hamilton Institute at Maynooth University and Jennifer Horgan, teacher and Irish Examiner columnist, to discuss the findings.Hit the ‘Play’ button on this page to hear the conversation.

But for how long? Will it disband in November for the election or in January for a rumored February election?Gary Murphy, Elaine Loughlin and Kevin Cunningham join Matt to discuss the potential timeline.

Comedian Killian Sundermann was the latest inductee into The Last Word’s Culture Club this week.Hit the ‘Play’ button on this page to hear all his favourite music, book, film & TV choices!

Hezbollah has vowed to retaliate after wave of exploding pagers killed 12 people and injured thousands in cities across Lebanon. Hannah McCarthy, foreign correspondent in Beirut, joins The Last Word to outline the situation in Lebanon as there are reports of a second wave of explosions.Listen back to the full discussion by pressing the 'Play' button on this page.

Amazon has told its staff that they must return to the office five days a week in January 2025, ending its hybrid working policy.Meanwhile, Intel have announced that they are postponing new factories in Germany and Poland for two years, meaning that the Leixlip plant will remain as the company’s “lead European hub”.Ian Guider covered these topics on Tuesday’s business news.Hit the ‘Play’ button on this page to hear the chat.

Many children in Ireland are overweight "because they have to be driven everywhere" according to the deputy leader of the Green Party.Senator Róisín Garvey joins The Last Word along with Prof Dónal O'Shea, HSE clinical lead on obesity, and Jen Hogan, parenting columnist with the Irish Times, to discuss the factors that are leading to around 20 per cent of primary school children being overweight or obese. Catch the full chat by pressing the 'Play' button on this page!

The new book is out now; Sophie: The Final Verdict. Author Senan Molony joins Matt to discuss how the evidence is laid out in his book and why a case was never brought forward that ended in a life sentence for Ian Bailey.

Donald Trump has received criticism after conspiracy theorist Laura Loomer joined his campaign trail, with some Republican supporters concerned the move could cost him Georgia and North Carolina in November’s election.Nationally syndicated columnist Cal Thomas and Marion McKeone, US Correspondent with the Business Post, joined Matt to discuss.Hit the ‘Play’ button on this page to hear the conversation.

It's prostate cancer awareness month and the Marie Keating Foundation are asking men to 'stand up for your prostate and pay attention to your pee' to recognise any signs and symptoms of prostate cancer early. Helen Forristal, Urology Nurse Specialist and Director of Nursing Services at the Marie Keating Foundation is here to give us all the information.

Ras Al-Khaimah is the northernmost emirate in the United Arab Emirates and is quickly becoming a popular holiday destination, particularly for those in search of adventure. Sarah Slattery from the travelexpert.ie joins The Last Word to explain what Ras Al-Khaimah has to offer.Catch the full chat by pressing the 'Play' button on this page!

Tánaiste Micheál Martin said on Monday that Ireland’s Apple tax will be used to “copper-fasten” investment in housing in the country in the coming years.Housing Minister Darragh O’Brien joined Matt on from the Fianna Fáil think-in to discuss how much the issue of housing will influence the upcoming general election campaign.Hit the ‘Play’ button on this page to hear the conversation.

We’ve got potential presidents spouting cat-eating conspiracy theories, another weird statue; this one of Queen Elizabeth in Antrim. And The UK moving to ban junk food TV ads pre-watershed, should Ireland follow suit?  Joe O’Shea, editor of Corkbeo.ie, and Jennifer Horgan, columnist with the Irish Examiner join The Last Word to discuss the week’s trending stories. Catch the full chat by pressing ‘play’ now! 

Matt was joined by Liam O’Callaghan, author of Blood and Thunder: Rugby and Irish Life: A History, which looked at how rugby in Ireland has become a sporting success, despite its small population.Hit the ‘Play’ button on this page to hear the chat.

John Gibbons brings us the weekly environment round up.The All Ireland Hedgehog Survey has warned that these robot mowers pose a large risk to the species.

Charlie Weston, Personal Finance Editor with the Irish Independent, was back with Matt on Thursday and they discussed how the Central Bank is to disband its consumer protection directorate.They also covered how the ECB has found that the Central Bank’s mortgage rules that cap borrowing for potential homebuyers negatively impact younger, middle and lower income households.Hit the ‘Play’ button on this page to hear the chat.

Apple has launched its much anticipated iPhone 16, with new AI features, but Apple is not the only tech company releasing high quality and innovative products.Andy O'Donoghue joins The Last Word to discuss Apple's latest launch and how it stacks up against new releases from companies like Google and Samsung.Catch the full chat by pressing the 'Play' button on this page!

CCTV is set to be used to catch illegal littering in Dublin city – but only if someone does it from their car.Green Party Dublin City Councillor Janet Horner and Liam Herrick, Executive Director for the Irish Council for Civil Liberties, joined Matt to discuss the idea.Hit the ‘Play’ button on this page to hear the chat.

The author of The Revelation Of Ireland joins Matt for this week's Culture Club to discuss his favourite music, movies, books, tv shows and more in the Culture Club.Catch the full chat by pressing the 'Play' button on this page!

Tánaiste Micheál Martin joined Matt on The Last Word to discuss Tuesday’s Apple Tax ruling and what will be done with the money available to the government, the ongoing conflict in the Middle East and how Anglo-Irish relations can improve going forward.Hit the ‘Play’ button on this page to hear the conversation.

With less than two months to go to the US presidential election, Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris and former Republican President Donald Trump have clashed in the first, a possibly only, debate between the candidates.Marion McKeone, US correspondent with the Business Post, and Larry Donnelly, law lecturer at the University of Galway and political columnist with The Journal, join The Last Word to discuss how each of the candidates faired in this crucial debate.Catch the full chat by pressing the 'Play' button on this page!

Kamala Harris and Donald Trump took part in the first US Presidential debate on Tuesday night in Philadelphia.Marion McKeone, US Correspondent with the Business Post and nationally syndicated columnist Cal Thomas looked ahead at what to expect and where the debate could be won and lost.Hit the ‘Play’ button on this page to hear the conversation.

Sarah McGuinness, Assistant News Editor with the Business Post, joined Matt for Tuesday’s business news.Up for discussion was Shane Lowry’s sponsorship deal with Kingspan ending amid the fallout from the Grenfell fire inquiry, Sky launching a mobile phone service in Ireland and the new features that were unveiled in Apple’s products at their latest launch in California.Hit the ‘Play’ button on this page to hear the chat.

A European court has ruled that Apple must pay more than €13 billion in back taxes to Ireland in a significant legal defeat for both the Irish Government and the US tech company.Daniel Murray, policy editor with the Business Post, Dan O'Brien, chief economist at the Institute of International and European Affairs, and Sinn Féin finance spokesperson Pearse Doherty join The Last Word to discuss the implications of this ruling.Catch the full chat by pressing the 'Play' button on this page!

Elaine Burke and Joe O'Shea discuss the position of The Late Late Show in today's tv environment.Plus its the end of The Grand Tour but what is ahead for Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond and James May?

David McWilliams, economist and author, joins The Last Word to discuss the human relationship with money as explored in his new book, Money - A Story of Humanity.Catch the full chat by pressing the 'Play' button on this page!

Lucy Letby was sentenced to life imprisonment for murdering seven babies and eight counts of attempted murder at a UK hospital between the summer of 2015 and 2016.The former neonatal nurse is the most prolific child serial killer in modern British history but there are growing calls for her convictions to be examined due to concerns over some evidence presented at trial.Nick Ferrari, presenter of Nick Ferrari at Breakfast on LBC Radio, joins The Last Word to discuss this story.Listen to the full discussion by pressing the 'Play' button on this page.

Are you thinking of booking a last-minute holiday in the coming weeks? On this week's The Last Word on Travel, Sarah Slattery from TheTravelExpert.ie gave a range of deals on offer that will give you value for money.Hit the ‘Play’ button on this page to hear the conversation.

Pulitzer Prize winning author Anne Applebaum joins The Last Word to discuss the threat posed to democracy by authoritarian governments around the world as outlined in her latest book Autocracy Inc.Catch the full discussion by pressing the 'Play' button on this page.

Consumer protection body opens investigation into Oasis tickets sale, there's outrage over a €336,000 bike shed and a depiction of 'potato eating' Irish family is pulled from a school book.Roe McDermott, Irish Times columnist, and Kieran Cunningham, chief sports writer with the Irish Daily Star, join The Last Word to discuss the week's trending stories.Catch the full chat by pressing the 'Play' button on this page!

Andy O'Donoghue brought us his top recommendations for the best e-scooters and e-bikes on the market to suit all budgets.To catch the full conversation, press the 'play' button on this page.

The government has launched a new plan to improve Ireland’s water quality.Some details include controls on fertiliser use and a target of 4,500 farm inspections annually.John Gibbons discussed it on this week’s environment slot.Hit the ‘Play’ button on this page to hear the conversation.

A group of Fianna Fáil politicians have put forward a Bill to ban dynamic pricing on tickets following the outrage over the Oasis ticket prices.Niamh Smyth, Fianna Fáil TD for Cavan-Monaghan , joins The Last Word to discuss the Bill that would extend existing legislation outlawing the resale of tickets above face value.Catch the full chat by pressing the 'Play' button on this page!

Author Christine Dwyer Hickey joins The Last Word to discuss her favourite music, movies, books, tv shows and more in the Culture Club. Catch the full chat by pressing the 'Play' button on this page!

Irish company Kingspan has been heavily criticised in the final report of the inquiry into the Grenfell Tower fire in London in 2017 which led to 72 deaths.Ian Guider from the Business Post joins The Last Word to discuss the report which found that Kingspan and two other firms engaged in a deliberate strategy to mislead the market about their products.Catch the full discussion by pressing the 'Play' button on this page.

Transport Minister Eamon Ryan has warned that Dublin Airport must stick to the passenger cap. He also spoke about the costs of the new Leinster House bicycle shelter.

We’ve heard a lot about dynamic pricing since tickets for Oasis at Croke Park next August went on sale last weekend, but does it impact our everyday spending more than we realise?Charlie Weston, Personal Finance Editor with the Irish Independent, joined Matt to tell us which other companies use the system.Hit the ‘Play’ button on this page to hear the chat.