Bingewatch (craosfhéachaint), cryptocurrency (criptea-airgeadra), influencer (tionchairí ar líne) and mansplaining (fearmhíniú) are among the relatively recent English words that now have Irish translations.

It's great for communication, but who decides on these new translations – and how?

Irish Language Editor Éanna Ó Caollaí, writer Alan Titley and Cormac Breathnach from Focloir.ie are here to explain how new Irish words are born. This podcast is available in English and Irish. 

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Having endured one of the coldest winters on record – mostly without electricity because of Russia’s bombing of power plants – the grinding misery of trying to survive for Ukranians goes on.

The devastation in the cities targeted by Russia is clear to see and cost in lives immense. Civilians are paying a massive price: official figures note that 55,000 Ukranians have been killed on the battlefield and the total death toll could be as high as 200,000 people. It is thought that 500,000 Russian soldiers have been killed – though the Kremlin has not released figures.

Inna Sovsun, a Ukrainian MP from the opposition Holos party, explains what life is like for her in the war, how successive peace talks have been weighted in Russia’s favour, and how her job as a legislator still goes on with, for her, the added worry that her partner is fighting on the front line.

Her resilience and determination that Russia cannot win, is she says, shared by her compatriots.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by John Casey and Suzanne Brennan.

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Saying it is targeting Hizbullah, the Iran-backed militia that essentially functions as a state-within-a state in Lebanon, Israel issues evacuation orders to residents in advance of its missile attacks. That has prompted a mass displacement of people seeking safety.

On Wednesday night, air strikes hit the Beirut seafront killing eight people and injuring more than 30 displaced people; families who had fled their homes on Israeli instructions and who were living in tents near the beach.

Sally Hayden, who reports from the region for The Irish Times, lives in Beirut.

To understand how the attacks are impacting Beirut residents, she visited churches, halls and even a football stadium where displaced people, including thousands of children, are seeking safety in very basic conditions.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Suzanne Brennan. 

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Garda sources say that finding the Kinahans has never been the problem for the teams of detectives investigating them. What has proved difficult is building a case against the men who are the reported leaders of one of the biggest drugs cartels in the world.

According to crime and security editor Conor Lally they are literally too scared to leave the UAE for fear of losing control of their lives and their liberty. Why? And why have they not been brought to justice given that a Garda file on the Kinahan leadership was submitted to the DPP in 2023.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Suzanne Brennan and Andrew McNair.

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It is the deadliest known episode of civilian casualties since the US and Israel launched its war in the region on February 28th.

In the immediate aftermath, no side took responsibility and who is to blame has become a question that the Trump administration is being called upon to answer.

And its answers are confusing and evasive, including the president’s claim that the school was hit by Iran.

While both Israel and the US say they are investigating, and with outside reporters unable to reach the scene, Malachy Browne and the Visual Investigations Team at the New York Times began to piece together what happened.

So how did the team do it and what does this mean for the US strategy of “precision strikes”? Browne explains.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Suzanne Brennan and Declan Conlon. 

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Through interviews and examples he shows how, with the amplification of social media, legitimate grievance can bloom into conspiracist, and how easily performance, paranoia, and power intertwine.

As Irish Times reviewer Tara Brady notes, the film which “begins as a study of toxic discourse in the United States expands into a sobering excavation of recent unrest in Dublin. The riots of November 2023, along with the persistence of aggressive anti-immigrant demonstrations, are presented as symptoms of a transnational malaise”.

Sheridan explains to In the News how he made the documentary, how imported misinformation can gain such a powerful hold, and why high-profile US commentators including Tucker Carlson and Nick Fuentes became so invested in the Dublin riots without any apparent factual knowledge of what occurred.

Amplified: The Exportation of the Culture Wars is available to rent on Apple TV and other digital platforms

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Suzanne Brennan. 

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So while it is easy to apply for a job online – multiple jobs even, in one go – it’s a harsh reality particularly for business or tech graduates looking for their first job that their achievement-filled CV won’t be read by a person.

Instead it will be put through an AI-powered predictive hiring tool designed to evaluate CVs.

In a blink it will find keywords related to many categories such as education and experience, and weight them according to the company’s requirements.

And there is a strong possibility it won’t just be looking at the CV; it will also scrape the web for a candidate’s social media posts and any other web mention.

And then if the candidate does get through that process, a video interview, with AI, might follow. Meeting an actual human is a long way off.

So how does it all work and why are recent graduates having such a hard time finding suitable employment?

Peter Cosgrove, managing director of Futurewise explains what AI does in the recruitment process, and why not getting the job might not be entirely the algorithm’s fault.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by John Casey.

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His death would, according to both US president Donald Trump and Israeli prime minister Binyamin Netanyahu, pave the way for regime change, allowing opposition forces in Tehran to rise up and take control. 

Iran retaliated with attacks on Israel, while Iranian drones have also hit countries across the Middle East. Hizbullah, an Iranian-backed militia, fired missiles into Israel in the early days of the war, and by Wednesday Israeli forces entered Lebanon. 

The death toll – notably in Iran – is mounting. 

And the rest of the world is feeling the impact with threats of economic instability, oil shortages and travel and trade chaos. 

But are the US and Israel on the same page when it comes to the war’s objectives? And are they equal partners in this or is this Israel’s war with the US providing military support? 

Irish Times contributor Mark Weiss in Jerusalem explains how the US and Israel are looking for different outcomes from this war. 

And Shashank Joshi, defence editor with The Economist Magazine, explores how the war might end – and when – and why the Kurds might be drawn in to war. 

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Suzanne Brennan and Declan Conlon. 

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Opening for applications next month, it will benefit about half a million people.

For socialist prime minister Pedro Sánchez, the move is about the Spanish values of dignity, community and justice. It also makes the country an outlier in Europe.

So who are the migrants likely to benefit from the amnesty and why, at a time when its European neighbours are tightening the rules around undocumented arrivals, has Spain offered such a sweeping amnesty. How will it work and how have Sanchez’s political opponents reacted? And will any other country in the bloc be encouraged to copy the Sanchez plan.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Suzanne Brennan. 

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The 38-year-old, who cannot be named for legal reasons, previously admitted to killing Mackenzie Michalski (31) during a sexual encounter and hiding her body.

At a preliminary hearing in February, the man’s lawyer made an application to have his client released with an electronic tag until the end of his trial. The court heard that his parents had purchased a flat in the Hungarian capital for this purpose and were willing to put up more than €50,000 for bail. The application was rejected.

Hungarian journalist Bálint Dömötör details the case.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Suzanne Brennan. 

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The deal is expected to be worth €600 million and is the biggest investment in Army equipment in the history of the State. It is one of several deals with French suppliers to provide a range of equipment and services with an estimated €2billion spend.

The coming years will see Ireland work in closer co-operation with our European neighbours on security matters.

Irish Times crime and security correspondent Conor Gallagher explains why Ireland has chosen France as its supplier of choice for the modernisation of our defence capabilities.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by John Casey. 

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As well as data-crammed mobile phones and laptops, they found merchandise emblazoned with the logo of the international fraud and money laundering gang.

The caps and bags – the sort of memorabilia a golf club might offer – feature “Ireland” and also slogans such as “Ireland Zone, Stay Safe”.

The gang has a significant operation in Ireland, having been linked to the theft and laundering of €94 million since 2020. Gardaí have arrested 636 people in relation to Black Axe activities, with 1,400 potential suspects. The gang originates in Nigeria.

Also seized was something that will be of interest to law enforcement agencies around the world: a copy of the gang’s constitution. Security sources believe it is the first time the document has ever been found by a police force in a western country.

Irish Times crime and security correspondent Conor Lally explains how the Black Axe gang operates in Ireland and the threat its growing membership poses.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Suzanne Brennan and Andrew McNair.

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They tracked Nemesio Rubén Oseguera Cervantes down to a cabin in the western state of Jalisco – his stronghold – and he was fatally wounded in the raid. The firefight also killed several of his heavily-armed accomplices, including his likely successor.

He was head of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG), known for trafficking vast quantities of fentanyl and cocaine into the US.

In 2025 it was designated a foreign terrorist organisation by Donald Trump‘s administration.

His death prompted waves of violent retaliation as the cartel put on a show of strength in areas far beyond Jalisco and into tourist hotspots.

The authorities have calmed the situation – for now – but fears are mounting that more violence will erupt as the cartel seeks to regroup after the death of its leader.

And that has brought the soccer World Cup – just months away – into sharp focus with questions about the ability of the Mexican authorities to keep soccer fans safe.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Declan Conlon. 

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Just hours later it is believed she was abducted from her home, her disappearance reported by friends the following day when she failed to show up for a church service.

As the daughter of Savannah Guthrie, presenter of NBC’s Today show, she is well-known to audiences having appeared several times on screen.

Every step of the investigation by local police and the FBI has been poured over by US media and true crime amateur sleuths.

But the mystery remains. More than three weeks later, Nancy Guthrie is still missing.

Richard Ruelas reporter from Arizona Republic has been covering the case from the beginning, visiting the scene many times and following every development.

He explains why this case has gripped the US.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Suzanne Brennan. 

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Up to now the scrutiny of Andrew's relationship with the notorious Epstein has focussed on allegations of sexual exploitation. But this affair has shifted the focus onto Andrew's conduct while working as a trade envoy for Britain. In that time he travelled the world at British taxpayers expense, promoting British business but also making plenty of connections that he would use to his own advantage.

So what did Andrew get up to in those years? And how much did his mother, the late Queen Elizabeth, and his brother King Charles know about the way he was behaving and the people he was associating with? The answers could determine the future of the Royal Family.

On today's In the News podcast we talk to Andrew Lownie, author of Entitled, a biography of Andrew and his ex-wife Sarah Ferguson.

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Rex Ryan premiered his play The Monk – called after the widely used nick-name of his subject – last summer but for its second outing it moved to a much larger Dublin venue, The Ambassador, for a weeklong run.

Ryan, who produces, stars and directs The Monk is, says Irish Times crime and security editor Conor Lally, a powerful presence on stage.

Hutch, adds little says Lally – except audience pulling power. He went along to a performance to see how Hutch, whose career he has followed closely, is portrayed. He gives his plain-speaking review here.

Lally found the section on the murder of journalist Veronica Guerin deeply distasteful and the extent to which RTÉ journalist Paul Reynolds lives rent-free in Hutch’s head simply bizarre.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by John Casey.

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Low cost and easy to make, this winter it has become a key weapon in Russia’s armoury as it pummels Ukraine, causing hundreds of deaths and cutting off energy supply.

And a key component in the Geran-2 design is a chip manufactured years ago by Taoglas, which is headquartered in Enniscorthy, Co Wexford.

So how did it make its way into Russia’s armament supply chain – especially given EU rules which ban the export to Russia of “high priority” dual-use technology that can have both civilian and military applications.

An investigation by The Irish Times in partnership with the Organised Crime and Corruption Reporting Project and others has revealed that technology from EU companies is making its way into Russia in vast quantities, where it is used in weapons such as the Geran-2.

This includes various components manufactured by Taoglas and another Irish-based company, TE Connectivity.

Irish Times crime and security correspondent Conor Gallagher was part of that investigative consortium and he explains how these drones work and why stopping their manufacture has proven difficult.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Suzanne Brennan.

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The piece of land on the border of counties Wicklow and Kildare has been in the Garda’s sights for many years but since the disappearance of the young women, missing since the 1990s, are now considered murders, ongoing reviews of the files bring new leads and new thinking on the investigation.

News on Monday that gardaí had begun an extensive dig on the land was accompanied by mention of Dullard and Jacob leading to speculation that it had been determined that both young women were the victims of the same murderer.

Not so, says Lally, who notes that gardaí suspect Jacob, who disappeared in broad daylight, was killed by convicted rapist Larry Murphy, while Dullard was killed by an unknown male who gave her a lift as she tried to get home.

Lally analyses this new phase in the investigation.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Suzanne Brennan. 

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His body found was found in Dublin’s Phoenix Park in November 2023 but his parents, Paul and Ann O’Neill were not informed of their son’s death until 13 months later.

That’s because his body was not identified when he was found or during the postmortem despite the fact that he had nine forms of ID in the pocket of his anorak.

So how were they found and why did it take so long to find them? Irish Times columnist Una Mullally talked to his parents about their son and about the questions they want answered by Fiosrú, the Office of the Garda Ombudsman, which is investigating the force’s handling of the puzzling case.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Suzanne Brennan.

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But isn’t just about everything in our diet, apart from fresh fruit and vegetables, processed in some way? So why has ultra-processed food become the focus of so much concern and debate?

Nutritionist Sarah Keogh gives her view on what’s happening on our plates.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Suzanne Brennan. 

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Since the files were released by the US department of justice two weeks ago, Irish Times journalist Naomi O’Leary has been combing through the documents.

It is not, she says, an easy cache to navigate, with a clunky search function and opaque filing system.

However she has been able to find multiple emails which reveal a relationship between Epstein and several famous magicians including Blaine and Copperfield – after the disgraced financier had been convicted and served prison time for soliciting sex with children.

O’Leary came into studio to detail her experience of searching the consistently disturbing files – so big that only a fraction of them have been excavated by journalists worldwide. She explains how sex trafficker Epstein, collector of powerful people and expert at developing transactional relationships with them, had a weird fascination with magicians.

Being mentioned in the Epstein files is not an indication of wrongdoing.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Suzanne Brennan and Andrew McNair.

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The 2026 Fifa World Cup will be hosted this summer by Mexico, Canada and the US.

But the killings by Ice agents of US citizens and their intimidatory presence on city streets has been well reported globally which may make travelling fans nervous. And that’s if they get in at all: the US president Donald Trump has imposed travel bans on several countries – including Senegal and Ivory Coast which have qualified to play.

And then there is the stratospherically high price of stadium tickets which make going to the game prohibitively expensive.

In January, former Fifa president Sepp Blatter supported calls by Swiss anti-corruption lawyer Mark Pieth for fans to boycott matches taking place in the US. But calls for boycotts of big sporting events are not unusual. They were loud before the last World Cup in Qatar but didn’t make much of an impression.

Abnos explains why a US boycott won’t happen.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by John Casey.

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This survey is open to anyone who has listened to either In The News or Early Edition – whether you listen regularly, occasionally, or have listened in the past.

On Monday, British prime minister Keir Starmer survived a day that could have ended his political career. The momentum against him had grown from Westminster whispers to the leader of Scottish Labour Anas Sarwar coming straight out and calling for him to step down. 

The release of the Epstein Files - which showed deeply damaging evidence against Starmer’s ambassadorial appointment to Washington, Peter Mandelson - was the excuse for the move against the prime minister, not the cause. His party has deep divisions. 

But Starmer rallied his party who publicly pledged support.

So he has survived – for now. 

But as Irish Times London correspondent Mark Paul explains there are several pitfalls ahead that may prove fatal for his leadership. 

Coming up as key days in Starmer’s diary are the release of the so-called “Mandelson Files”; the byelection on February 26th in Manchester and most dangerous for him according to Paul, the Scottish and Welsh parliamentary elections on May 7th when Labour is expected to get an electoral drubbing. 

So if by the summer Starmer is forced out, what will it mean for Ireland and its relationship with the UK? And who might succeed him?

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Suzanne Brennan and Declan Conlon. 

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His legal challenges have clogged up the courts, but he is also involved in another process – an appeal against his dismissal before a disciplinary appeal panel.

Last month that panel fell apart when two of its three members stood down. But the courts need the disciplinary panel to finish its work before Burke’s case can be resolved.

So how is this new delay being viewed by the lawyers attempting to bring this long running saga to an end?

And how does the panel work? What is the holdup and why has their been two panels so far with a third one now likely?

Irish Times legal affairs correspondent Mary Carolan explains this new twist in the Enoch Burke affair.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Declan Conlon and Suzanne Brennan.

The Irish Times wants to hear listener feedback on our two news podcasts: In The News and Early Edition.

This survey is open to anyone who has listened to either In The News or Early Edition – whether you listen regularly, occasionally, or have listened in the past.

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The pair also killed Stewart’s husband Trevor Buchanan.

They left the two bodies in a garage in Castlerock, Co Derry, staging the scene to make it look as if they had taken their own lives.

The pair had committed the perfect murder so they could be together. And they had got away with it.

That is until 2009 when Colin Howell, a respected dentist and devout evangelical Christian, walked into a police station out of the blue and confessed to the killings. He and Stewart were convicted of the murders and jailed for a minimum of 21 years and 18 years respectively.

Seamus grew up being told that his mother had killed herself, until the truth came out. By then he was a medical student in England. Now a doctor in New York he tells In the News what it was like growing up in the Howell house and how his discovered that his father was a murderer. He explains how it impacted on his life, and how it has made him acutely aware of injustice which now for him includes advocating for Palestine.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Aideen Finnegan and Suzanne Brennan.

The Irish Times wants to hear listener feedback on our two news podcasts: In The News and Early Edition.

This survey is open to anyone who has listened to either In The News or Early Edition - whether you listen regularly, occasionally, or have listened in the past.

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That’s according to Irish Times restaurant reviewer Corinna Hardgrave, who explains what it takes for a restaurant to win a Michelin star and what it means for them when they do.

Ireland has 18 one-star and five two-star restaurants – but no three stars.

For the first time the Michelin Guide is holding its awards ceremony in Dublin, on Monday, and Hardgrave gives her predictions on who might get a new star and who might be awarded an extra one. However she says nothing is predictable with the highly secretive Michelin.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by John Casey.

The Irish Times wants to hear listener feedback on our two news podcasts: In The News and Early Edition.

This survey is open to anyone who has listened to either In The News or Early Edition - whether you listen regularly, occasionally, or have listened in the past.

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Much of the content was redacted, sparking accusations of a cover-up designed to protect US president Donald Trump, although authorities claim they were protecting victims.

Just what is contained in them – and who is named or seen in the emails and videos – is slowly emerging as reporters sift through the vast data dump.

What is clear is that Epstein was a trafficker and abuser of children and young women and that he maintained a transactional friendship with wealthy and influential men. The emails reveal a pattern of disgusting misogyny and depravity.

Academic and political commentator Scott Lucas explains the timing of the data release and what’s next.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Suzanne Brennan.

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These are the sort of figures other documentaries can only dream of, so it’s a hit? 

Far from it says Irish Times journalist Hugh Linehan who points out that it cost Amazon $45 million to make plus a reported $35 million in marketing costs so financially it makes no sense. 

And critically? Well “boring” is probably the nicest thing reviewers have said. 

Over nearly two hours it reveals very little about the former Slovenian model other than she wears nice clothes and even nicer shoes. 

For Linehan, it’s a classic Trump family grift, this time with Melania making the money. She is expected to be paid $28 million for the documentary which charts the 20 days in the lead-up to her husband’s 2025 inauguration. 

Presented by Bernice Harrison.

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Two weeks later, on New Year’s Day, 2023, gardaí would discover her body in Pacheco’s apartment. She had been strangled.

At Pacheco’s trial for her murder at the Central Criminal Court in Cork, this and many other texts, voice messages and recorded conversations were read out in court.

As Irish Times Southern correspondent Barry Roche who attended the trial explains, they paint a picture of an angry man, full of self-pity, who could not accept that his former girlfriend who he had followed to Ireland from their native Brazil no longer wanted to be in a relationship with him.

He put forward a plea of self-defence but the evidence proved otherwise and he was found guilty of her murder. On January 23rd last he was sentenced to life in prison.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Suzanne Brennan. 

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The Chicago-born dancer was lead performer and choreographer of Riverdance, the 1994 Eurovision interval show that introduced a new, high octane, modern form of Irish dancing to the world.

It brought him fame and fortune and in 1996 he developed a global touring show called Lord of the Dance. Critically acclaimed it was for many years wildly successful.

With the 30-year anniversary of Lord of the Dance coming up, Flately who is based in Monaco, signed a contract with Newry firm Switzer Consulting to run the shows. And it’s the details of that contract that were in contention.

During the civil case taken by Switzer, the court heard claims about Flatley’s lifestyle that will come as a surprise to his many fans.

His former financial adviser Des Walshe claimed that his ex-client was “all about image”, and living a millionaire’s lifestyle funded by borrowing. “He was faking it on a multimillion euro scale,” Walshe submitted to the court.

So how did Flatley react to this damning characterisation? And what was his reaction when the judge lifted the injunction.

Belfast-based reporter Paul Colgan explains the complex case and why it has come to this for the world’s most famous Irish dancer.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by John Casey. 

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The east coast was hit hardest. Homes were flooded that had never flooded before, rivers burst their banks, road and rail closures caused traffic chaos and businesses were forced to close. 

Some of the areas worst hit by the floods received almost half their average rainfall for January in one 24-hour period.

But shouldn’t there have been stronger warnings of what was likely to come and what are people supposed to do when they are told flooding is likely? 

Climate change is altering weather patterns with potentially devastating results, so how prepared is the Government for what is to come?

Irish Times climate and science correspondent Caroline O’Doherty explains why Storm Chandra hit so hard and why some areas were impacted more than others. 

And we hear from Rathfarnham resident Ciaran Kirwan whose home was flooded.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Suzanne Brennan. 

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The official line was that Zhang Youxia, and later another top general, had been ousted from their jobs due to “serious violations of discipline and law”. 

That is widely understood as code for corruption but no more details were forthcoming. 

This led to speculation that the reason Chinese president Xi Jinping took the action against Zhang, a man believed to be untouchable because of his military background and his long, personal relationship with the president, was because he was no longer loyal and was plotting against him. 

For Irish Times Beijing based-correspondent Denis Staunton, talk of a coup by military generals is wide of the mark. Instead it appears that Xi, who has been on an anti-corruption sweep of government at all levels since he took office, began looking at the military and the top brass came into his sights.

So is Xi simply – and ruthlessly – consolidating his power? And what does this sudden and dramatic change in military leadership structure mean for the country’s long-stated ambition of taking control of Taiwan?

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Suzanne Brennan and John Casey. 

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But there’s strong local opposition in this liberal city. When agents appear in a neighbourhood, protests begin and that’s putting ordinary people into contact with the armed and masked officers.

Two citizens have been shot and killed. Renee Good earlier this month and, at the weekend, Alex Pretti.

Can the Trump administration ignore the growing calls for deescalation and accountability?

Declan Conlon speaks to The Irish Times US Correspondent Keith Duggan.

Produced by Suzanne Brennan and Andrew McNair. 

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He is the aide tasked with turning even the most vaguely thought-through policy announced by the US president into action – and he relishes the job.

To understand just why ICE is so brutally on the ground in American cities, its necessary to know Miller’s own tough stance on immigration.

Miller’s aggressive style has served up some of the administration’s most startling soundbites whether that’s on Greenland, tariffs, Europe or immigration.

He is not afraid to upset people as he ruthlessly implements Trump’s agenda.

But who is Stephen Miller and how did he rise, as Trump says: “to the top of the White House totem pole”.

Today’s guest is Ashley Parker, a journalist with The Atlantic Magazine who has been following Miller’s career from Washington intern to hard-right Oval Office enforcer.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Declan Conlon.

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But mounting research suggests adults and adolescents with the condition are far more likely to develop substance addiction.

Rates of diagnoses for ADHD have been soaring in recent years and addiction programmes in Ireland report high numbers of people with ADHD seeking help for substance misuse.

On today’s In The News podcast, Eric, Oonagh and Shane, three adults with ADHD, share their journey navigating addiction.

And the head of the charity ADHD Ireland Ken Kilbride calls for addiction services to be better equipped to help people with ADHD who come to them.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Andrew McNair. 

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Carney’s used his address to tell allies that the "rules-based international order" is over and that "middle powers" like Canada and the EU needed to band together to resist great powers like China and the US.

Carney's message came after recent overtures to China, resetting relations with the superpower as he seeks a less reliant relationship with Trump's erratic US next door.

But what exactly does Carney's message imply, and would the leaders he was addressing have the wherewithal to follow through on such a course of action?

Irish Times China correspondent Denis Staunton explains what Carney’s new vision for the world means and how Beijing views this growing distance between once close allies.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Declan Conlon and Suzanne Brennan. 

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Of the 99 people arrested in connection with the Dublin riots, 82 have been charged with offences which range from attacking a garda and setting fire to a bus to stealing cigarettes and trainers.

The unprecedented scenes of mayhem, damage and looting in and around O’Connell Street, was sparked by an attack earlier in the day of three young children and a care worker by Riad Bouchaker, an Algerian who has lived in Ireland for many years.

At the time, the riots were characterised as being anti-immigrant in motivation. But as Irish Times crime and security correspondent Conor Gallagher explains, the picture that emerges from court reports reveals that the majority of the guilty rioters had very different reasons to be there.

He also examines the sentencing of the rioters, and what it says about the attitude of the courts to the crimes committed on that night.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Suzanne Brennan. 

As we head into the New Year, The Irish Times wants to hear listener feedback on our two news podcasts; In The News and our more recently released sister podcast Early Edition.

This survey is open to anyone who has listened to either In The News or Early Edition- whether you listen regularly, occasionally, or have listened in the past.

This survey should take around 3-5 minutes to complete. All responses are anonymous. Thank you!

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On Saturday he announced tariffs on France, Germany, the UK and others, after those nations sent ⁠military personnel to the island at Denmark’s request.

On Monday UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer responded to the threat, describing it as “completely wrong”.

And how is the EU responding? Potentially, with tariffs of its own - and that could endanger the US-EU trade deal that was agreed last August.

But some countries are calling for caution. Like Ireland, which has a lot to lose from a trade war between Europe and the United States.

On today’s In the News, host John Casey speaks to Cliff Taylor of the Irish Times about the implications for Ireland if there is a tariff escalation and the US-EU trade deal is abandoned.

Produced by Declan Conlon.

As we head into the New Year, The Irish Times wants to hear listener feedback on our two news podcasts; In The News and our more recently released sister podcast Early Edition.

This survey is open to anyone who has listened to either In The News or Early Edition- whether you listen regularly, occasionally, or have listened in the past.

This survey should take around 3-5 minutes to complete. All responses are anonymous. Thank you!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

As we head into the New Year, The Irish Times wants to hear listener feedback on our two news podcasts; In The News and our more recently released sister podcast Early Edition.

This survey is open to anyone who has listened to either In The News or Early Edition- whether you listen regularly, occasionally, or have listened in the past.

This survey should take around 3-5 minutes to complete. All responses are anonymous. Thank you!

The amount of cannabis being smuggled into Ireland has risen significantly in recent years, with most the product for sale now coming from the United States.

So why have drug gangs here turned to overseas product aand why from the US?

In today’s episode by Irish Times Crime and Security correspondent Conor Lally explains how drug gangs attempt to get cannabis into the country - and how they are caught. 

Presented by Bernice Harrison, produced by Suzanne Brennan.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

He was speaking on Steve Bannon’s popular War Room podcast and it was a meeting of minds between one of the architects of Maga and the financial adviser-turned podcaster and campaigner.

Bannon recently said he has been helping to form an Irish “national party”, working “behind the scenes” on “the Irish situation”.

But has he? Where is the evidence for that? And how receptive would an Irish audience be to the former White House strategist’s vision for the country?

Meanwhile Hobbs told a conference in Athlone this month that those who want to see a new government in Ireland that would cut immigration and break ties with globalist elites need to “reach across the Atlantic” and seek help from the Irish diaspora in the US Maga movement.

So could Hobbs be an Irish Trump? What are the other likely candidates?

And why is Bannon so out of touch with the political system in Ireland.

Irish Times crime and security correspondent Conor Gallagher, an expert in the Irish far-right, explains.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Declan Conlon. 

As we head into the New Year, The Irish Times wants to hear listener feedback on our two news podcasts; In The News and our more recently released sister podcast Early Edition.

This survey is open to anyone who has listened to either In The News or Early Edition- whether you listen regularly, occasionally, or have listened in the past.

This survey should take around 3-5 minutes to complete. All responses are anonymous. Thank you!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Doctors reported that the child’s injuries were similar to those suffered by car crash victims.

McGhee and the child’s father, John Paul O’Connell, had told paramedics that the little boy had fallen from a bunk bed in their Limerick home. He died three days later in hospital in his mother’s arms.

McGhee pleaded guilty to his murder at the trial in November and on Wednesday she was jailed for life.

The boy’s father has already been jailed for seven years after pleading guilty to neglect and impeding the prosecution of McGhee, knowing or believing she had murdered his son.

Mason’s mother Elizabeth Conway gave a powerful and heartbreaking victim impact statement in the Central Criminal Court which court reporter Eoin Reynolds describes here.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Suzanne Brennan.

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It’s a puzzling decision given that cameras were proven to work in a 2025 trial. And what about congestion charges? They’ve been talked about, but would they work and are they fair?

As work on new elements of the Dublin City Transport Plan is set to begin – including one of the bus corridors that promise to make sense of the BusConnects route changes – Olivia Kelly, Dublin Correspondent, explains what is and isn’t getting the city moving.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Suzanne Brennan. 

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The regime has responded to the demonstrations with a heavy hand. According to various human rights agencies, more than 650 people are believed to have been killed by security forces. 

The violence towards protestors has only intensified in recent days, with the regime shutting down access to the country’s internet and phone lines - leaving the people of Iran cut off from eachother and the rest of the world. 

In today’s episode Irish Times producer Suzanne Brennan talks to Bel Trew, chief international correspondent with the Independent about the background to the unrest and whether this latest uprising could signal the fall of the regime

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A new feature of Elon’s Musk’s AI tool, Grok – available to users of his X platform – allows people to create intimate photographs of people without their consent and create child sex abuse imagery.

Women have reported that their photos had been taken from the internet and digitally altered by strangers on X, to “nudify” them so they appeared naked or in a bikini.

As Irish Times political correspondent Ellen Coyne explains there are few consequences for those who use the AI model to create illegal sexual images of women and children.

Meanwhile Musk initially responded to the avalanche of international criticism of his AI tool with crying face emojis but since then the platform has reportedly moved to restrict access to the feature.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by John Casey. 

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Countless bystanders took videos on their phones from all angles on the snowy suburban street as the mother and US citizen drove by, was surrounded by armed Ice (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) agents and was shot dead.

So it should be possible to quickly reach a definitive conclusion as to what happened.

But as Rachel Leingang, Midwest political correspondent for Guardian US, explains the killing instantly became politicised in a city where tensions were already on a knife-edge, with armed Ice officers swarming neighbourhoods as part of the Trump administration immigration crackdown.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Suzanne Brennan.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Reaction to Trump’s intentions has taken on some urgency following his removal by military force of Venezuela’s president, Nicolás Maduro, last weekend,

Quite how he might move to take over the vast Arctic territory is unclear.

This week the White House said the use ‍of the US military is “always an option”; it also said it might seek to buy the island from Denmark.

Greenland is part of the Danish kingdom. Mette Frederiksen, the Danish prime minister, has said an attack by the US on a Nato ally – Greenland as part of Denmark – would mean the end of the alliance.

But in a week that saw the Trump administration doubling down on its intention to take over the mineral rich island, the EU is scrabbling to respond to the threats from Washington in a way Trump might take seriously, as Brussels-based Irish Times reporter Jack Power explains.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Suzanne Brennan. 

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On January 4th, after a desultory 1-1 draw with Leeds, he took aim, not at his players but at United’s top brass – his bosses. He was, he said, the manager, not the coach; the heavy implication being that he wanted to make his own decisions and that management were getting in his way.

On Monday it was announced that Amorim would be leaving the club with immediate effect.

Once again Manchester United is on the hunt for a manager – or to be more accurate in the modern game – a coach.

Irish Times columnist Ken Early explains why Amorim was never a good fit for United and why coaches at top-flight clubs have an increasingly short sell-by date.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by John Casey. 

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But if Maduro is in New York, who is in charge in Venezuela? US President Donald Trump says, “we are” – but what does that really mean? In today’s episode, Tom Hennigan who reports on South America for The Irish Times explains what Maduro’s arrest means for the country and its people. 

Presented by Declan Conlon, produced by Suzanne Brennan.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Manning - who isn’t even a member of a gym - decided to take on the gruelling challenge to find out why this fitness craze has become so popular in Ireland and around the world.  But with so little preparation, did he survive the race? And what does it involve anyway? 

In today’s episode, we’ll hear all about Manning's Hyrox experience, whether he’d do it again and whether you should do it too.

Presented by Bernice Harrison, produced by Suzanne Brennan.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In the space of a few short years, generative AI has exploded into our daily lives, impacting the way we learn, work and understand the world around us.

Open AI, the American artificial intelligence company cofounded by Sam Altman and Elon Musk in 2015 which runs ChatGPT, claims its non-profit “mission” is to ensure these systems “benefit all of humanity”.

And while the launch of ChatGPT has undoubtedly lightened the workload of many, engineer, journalist and AI expert Karen Hao says the AI race for world domination carries a huge human and environmental cost.

In 2019, Hao spent three days embedded in the offices of OpenAI and discovered this company, which claims to be transparent and operating “for the good of humanity”, was in fact highly secretive.

In her bestselling book ‘Empire of AI: Inside the reckless race for total domination’, Hao warns that the world has entered a new and ominous age of empire, where a small handful of companies are writing the future of humanity.

Today, on the In The News podcast, how the race for total AI domination is repeating the worst of human history.

Karen Hao discusses the severe cost of the seemingly unstoppable growth of OpenAI.

Presented by Sorcha Pollak. Produced by Aideen Finnegan. 

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Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Aideen Finnegan.

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In the early hours of May 8th, two masked men in a stolen Audi staged a drive-by shooting, firing nine shots indiscriminately at houses on Limerick’s Hyde Road, including at April Collins’s home. More shots were fired at a Collins-owned home on the Hyde Road in November 2024, and in two separate attacks in January 2025. Since then, there have been a dozen violent incidents, including pipe and petrol bomb attacks.

The Garda Emergency Response Unit now conducts nightly armed checkpoints in flashpoint areas. The gangs appear undeterred.

Between February and April, the Cork-based bomb disposal unit was deployed on multiple occasions to deal with pipe bombs seized in Limerick’s criminal strongholds.

In 2012 there was hope that the violent territorial feud between the city’s key drug suppliers, the McCarthy-Dundon gang and the Keane-Collopy gang had been calmed, particularly with the jailing of key members of the Dundon family.

April Collins’s evidence sealed the case for the State. She moved away from Hyde Road following the court case but in late 2023 she moved back and tit-for-tat attacks ensued.

And what of the new generation street criminals? Some are so young they were not even born when the original feud was in at its peak, but their actions show those gang lines that were drawn still exist: that the feud has never gone away.

Brian Carroll tells In the News about the resurgence in drug-related gang violence in Limerick.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Declan Conlon and Suzanne Brennan.

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From the moment he reported her missing in 2017, Richard Satchwell stuck to his story that his wife Tina had run off.

His many media appeals begged her to come home. But as the jury heard during his five-week trial in the Central Criminal Court for her murder, she was indeed home and she had been all along.

Richard had killed her in 2017, dug a hole under the stairs of their terraced Youghal home and buried her.

The Garda did look for her – as a missing person – but “red flags” emerged soon after her disappearance were “simply ignored” by gardaí, the court was told.

What were they? And why did it take until six years after her disappearance for a thorough search of the Satchwell house to take place?

Irish Times legal affairs correspondent Mary Carolan tells In the News how the court case unfolded and what happens next.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Declan Conlon and John Casey.

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For years the Irish Republican Brotherhood – the IRB – was remembered annually in a curious ceremony at Dublin’s Mansion House when its self-styled president Billy McGuire conducted a ritual that involved turning a golden harp to reaffirm the sovereignty of Ireland.

The existence of an IRB will come as a surprise to historians who consider that the secret-oath-bound society of the same name was disbanded more than 100 years ago.

But in recent years, a new cohort has taken over the IRB name, turning it into a growing organisation steeped in the pseudo-legal language of the sovereign citizen movement, which believes citizens are not subject to State laws.

This has caused officials in Dublin and nationally to become increasingly nervous about the group’s intentions.

The leaders of the modern IRB are in large part veterans of the Covid-19 anti-mask and anti-lockdown campaigns, along with property owners who turned to conspiracy theories after losing vast sums during the crash. Its leaders include a prominent Clare businessman, a teacher, a healthcare worker and a life coach.

This version of the IRB has a shadow government, a nascent court system and a network of local government bodies. It has also adopted a new time zone, Irish Rising Time, which is 25 minutes slower and based on the time zone used in Dublin until the 1916 rising. It even claims control over Óglaigh na hÉireann.

So is this fringe group like those harmless re-enactors who cosplay historical events or does it have the potential to go the way of some sovereign citizen groups in the US and Germany who have escalated their actions to include violence?

Irish Times Crime and Security Correspondent Conor Gallagher explains.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Suzanne Brennan.

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So what are the traditions we’ve clung to and what are the new ones that have crept up on us?

Who sends Christmas cards anymore? And why have Poinsettias, once such an exotic seasonal plant, fallen out of favour?

Irish Times feature writer Laura Slattery has been teasing out the traditions that make an Irish Christmas.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Declan Conlon. 

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RTÉ’s smash hit reality TV show Traitors Ireland was a ratings juggernaut that dished up endless water-cooler moments. Oasis played two triumphant Croke Park gigs, with all talk about eye-watering ticket prices forgotten in the blazing sunshine and general euphoria. And Kneecap’s frontman Liam Óg hAnnaidh aka Mo Chara’s London court appearances became mini-festivals with music mixing with politics.

And then where was Lily Allen’s tell-all album, West End Girl and presidential hopeful Maria Steen and her handbag.

These and other much-talked about highlights are picked over by Aideen Finnegan from the Irish Times podcast team and journalist Niamh Browne.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Suzanne Brennan.

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At 43, he is the street leader of the radical right-wing nationalist upsurge gripping Britain.

An estimated 150,000 like-minded protesters turned out in London in September for his “Unite the Kingdom” march and for months Irish Times London correspondent Mark Paul has tried to get an interview with him.

And then the call came out of the blue on a cold December evening.

Robinson was planning a stunt in an hour’s time – to announce the date of his next protest – and would the Irish Times like to come?

In the end the stunt failed for technical reasons but Paul got to see how the avowed right-wing radical works and got to shadow him the following day.

At a choral service – to “bring the Christ back into Christmas” he got to see how Robinson is mixing his newfound conversion to evangelical Christianity with his anti-immigrant message.

Paul tells In the News how Robinson’s new style of campaigning echoes the Maga movement that got Donald Trump elected.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Declan Conlon and Suzanne Brennan. 

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Irish Times foreign correspondents Denis Staunton, who is based in Beijing, and Europe correspondent Naomi O’Leary, each picked two events whose impact will be felt into the future.

They include the meeting between Narendra Modi, Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping, a trilateral power meeting in China that said much about the relationship between the US and the rest of the world; the October 10th ceasefire in Gaza, which is broadly holding in a way other ceasefires haven’t; the record S&P stock surge in the US and why it loudly hints at an AI bubble and what that could mean for Ireland; and Europe’s growing willingness to break a taboo, to reconsider the terms of the UN 1951 Refugee Convention which gave immigrants and refugees rights and imposed obligations on European countries.

And amid all the gloom there were some lighter moments that struck our two correspondents.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Declan Conlon. 

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It allows the EU to export more cars, wines and spirits to South America, with goods including meat coming the other way – and that’s what worries Iris, but also French, farmers.

There are hopes it will be signed off at this week’s two-day EU summit in Brussels; hopes at least on the part of the European Commission and Germany.

France and Italy are still holding out on signing up – urging a push-back to January on any decision – while Ireland appears stuck in the middle.

Mercosur countries form the world’s sixth largest economy with a total population of 270 million people. It’s a vast market for EU producers.

So how will the Mercosur talks play out this week and what pressure will Ireland be put under to sign up to a deal that Irish farmers say would greatly injure not just them, but the economy as a whole.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Declan Conlon. 

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Golfing great Rory McIlroy made history at The Masters; a new athletics star was born in Kate O’Connor; and Troy Parrott made football fans of us all with his stellar performance against Hungary to keep our World Cup dreams alive.

And there were so many more sporting moments – including surprise retirements – throughout the year that set records and pulses racing.

Irish Times sports writers Malachy Clerkin and Muireann Duffy give their sporting highlights from 2025.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by John Casey.

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For a look back on the year in Irish politics, Irish Times political correspondents Ellen Coyne and Jack Horgan-Jones came into the studio with their standout stories – from the fretting about the threat of US tariffs to the highs and lows of the presidential election; and from Paschal Donohoe’s exit for a more glamorous job to the Government’s new housing manifesto.

Then there was Tipperary North TD Michael Lowry’s unparliamentary sign language.

And what exactly are “country pursuits” and why did they emerge as a talking point during the presidential election.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Suzanne Brennan with Andrew McNair on sound.

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In June, Evan Fitzgerald (22) walked into a busy shopping centre in Carlow and opened fire. He then turned his weapon on himself and ended his own life.

The year also saw some high-profile court cases, including the trial of Richard Satchwell, who was found guilty of murdering his wife, Tina. And there was the case of former superstar hurler DJ Carey, who was given five and a half years in prison for deception and fraud.

For Crime and Security Editor Conor Lally, three stories stood out – for the events themselves but also for what they tell us about crime and policing in Ireland in 2025: the missing toddler Daniel Aruebose, whose absence went unnoticed for years and whose death is now a homicide inquiry; the discovery in Portlaoise of a far-right group who were allegedly planning an attack on Galway Mosque and the extradition of Sean McGovern from Dubai.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Suzanne Brennan.

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Welcomed by parents there but criticised by big tech and some free-speech advocates, the ban will see companies such as Facebook, Instagram and TikTok face massive fines if they fail to take reasonable steps to remove the social media accounts of Australian children. And to stop children getting such accounts in the first place.

Ireland is also taking steps to make children safer online, with a Government push to design a digital wallet linked to social security numbers as proof of age. And the Department of Health’s online safety taskforce will also lay out its proposals today.

Irish Times Political Correspondent Ellen Coyne explains the Government’s advanced plans to protect children from accessing harmful material online.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Suzanne Brennan and Andrew McNair.

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Now for many motorists for long stretches of the day - it’s a car park.

So are there any quick fixes? Are more roads the answer, more tolls? Better public transport certainly is the key, but why is our infrastructure so dire that people who live in the ever expanding Dublin commuter belt have no other option but to get in their cars and drive?

The road that partially circles Dublin is congested and that’s the problem. There’s too much traffic on it. So what can be done to get it moving?

Brian Caulfield, professor in transportation at Trinity College Dublin, explains.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by John Casey and Andrew McNair.

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All generally sound advice but widely perceived as tone deaf as it is in an information campaign aimed at young people forced to move back into their family homes, to once again sleep in their childhood bedrooms.

The housing crisis with its high rents and lack of choice has meant many young people stay living with their parents for far longer than they want. The average age for Irish people to leave the family home is 28.

The video, created by youth group SpunOut for the Housing Agency, has sparked negative responses from online commentators and Opposition politicians.

Irish Times political correspondent Jack Horgan-Jones explains why the messaging fell so flat and how the controversy is playing out in Leinster House.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Suzanne Brennan. 

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Tadhg’s grandmother, who was also in the house on Saturday evening, is in critical condition in hospital having suffered extensive burns in the blaze at Castleview Park, Edenderry.

The house has been attacked before, in one incident all its windows were broken in what is believed to be an ongoing drug debt feud.

Gardaí suspect a criminal gang involved in the drugs trade in the Midlands were behind the firebombing.

Garda sources said the incident was probably intended as an intimidatory attack and they did not believe the people at the property were the intended targets.

Irish Times crime and security correspondent Conor Gallagher reports from the scene.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Andrew McNair. 

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More than 33,000 photographs of detainees, mostly believed to have been taken in 2015-2024, show the extent of the degradation and torture inflicted on them by Assad’s regime.

For some families, the leak to the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ), finally gives the tragic answer to what happened to their loved ones.

Assad presided over Syria during the country’s 13-year civil war during which about half a million people were killed including more than 200,00 civilians at the hands of the regime and more than 160,000 were forcibly “disappeared”.

Many of the bodies in the leaked photographs bear clear signs of torture. Nearly half are naked and most show signs of starvation.

Irish Times Beirut-based reporter Sally Hayden worked with the ICIJ on the leak and she explains the importance of this evidence.

She notes that as soon as the Irish Times became aware of the existence of the leaked photographs in October, it has advocated for consulting victims’ families regarding their release.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Suzanne Brennan.

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The latest round of talks started two weeks ago with a leaked 28-point draft peace proposal which alarmed Ukrainian and European officials who said that it was weighted too much in Moscow’s favour. The proposal would have seen Ukraine cede territory to Russia, Russia readmitted to the G8 and Ukraine banned from joining Nato.

There followed a 20-point plan, and then a 27-point plan. The talks – with the US represented by special envoy Steve Witkoff and Donald Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner – moved from Geneva to Moscow where, on Tuesday, five hours of talks with Russian president Vladimer Putin around the table yielded no agreement. Talks are currently taking place in Miami.

Putin has been clear, Russia is winning the war and while he is willing to come to the table to negotiate, there is no urgency. Ukraine has indicated it too is keen for a deal – but not on any terms. While in Washington, the US president has been making hopeful noises, reflecting the widespread belief that he just wants to get a peace deal done.

Meanwhile at home Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskiy has been rocked by a corruption scandal that has seen his chief of staff, who had led the Ukrainian delegation at peace talks, resigning on Friday.

Irish Times Europe Correspondent based in Kyiv, Dan McLaughlin, explains how the talks evolved and what next for the war.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Declan Conlon and Andrew McNair.

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It has long been a point of pride in Ireland that the police force are not armed unlike their European counterparts. And while these guns fire electric shocks and not bullets, this is change in how the gardaí police the streets.

So does this move bring closer the day when the Garda will be an armed force? How will it change the way the gardaí interact with the public? And why now?

Irish Times crime and security editor Conor Lally explains.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Suzanne Brennan. 

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US president Donald Trump claims the air strikes on boats in the region are not acts of aggression but enforcement operations to prevent alleged drug trafficking.

To date it is estimated that 83 people have been killed but it has not been made clear by the administration the intelligence that led up the attacks proving the boats were indeed carrying drugs.

So is this a “war on drugs” or is it part of a broader plan to oust Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro?

And with Trump now saying the country’s air space should be shut down, is a ground offensive on the horizon?

I speak to professor of Latin American history and migration studies at Vassar College, Daniel Mendiola.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by John Casey and Andrew McNair. 

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This at a time when rents have never been higher.

The reason given most frequently by landlords is that they are selling up. Why?

New rent regulations which improve the rights of long-term tenants are set be introduced in March 2026. Could this be the reason landlords are getting out of the market?

And why are small landlords more likely to want to exit the market than big institutional investors who dominate the private rental sector?

Irish Times housing reporter Niamh Towey has talked to landlords and estate agents to get a clearer picture.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Declan Conlon and Andrew McNair.

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Already it is believed that the convicted criminal, encouraged by his near success in last year’s general election, is using what will be a long build-up to next year’s byelection to get his campaign in order and to register hundreds, even thousands, of new voters in Dublin’s north inner city.

So will his €800,000 tax bill from the Criminal Assets Bureau put a stop to his political ambitions and could the man named as the head of the Hutch organised crime group become a TD?

I talk to Irish Times crime and security editor Conor Lally who has long covered Hutch’s career in crime.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Suzanne Brennan and Andrew McNair. 

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A blaze that began in one 32-storey apartment block on Wednesday quickly spread to seven of the eight towers in the densely populated complex. So how did one of the city’s deadliest ever blazes spread so quickly.

The Kwong Fuk Estate, a public housing development, was undergoing refurbishment and the buildings were covered in bamboo scaffolding and netting. New cladding had been installed and now that the rescue operation is over, attention is turning on investigating why and how the fire took hold.

As the death toll grows and questions around building standards mount, Irish Times Beijing correspondent Denis Staunton, who reported from London in 2017 sees clear parallels with the Grenfell Tower disaster.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Declan Conlon. 

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A Bill to rename Dublin Airport after former taoiseach Seán Lemass has been brought forward in the Dáil.

It is not the first time the suggestion has been made; four years ago Taoiseach Micheál Martin proposed it, but talk of it fizzled out.

For McGreevy, an Irish Times journalist and historian whose next book is on Lemass, the former taoiseach and leader of Fianna Fáil (1959-1966) is a clear choice.

He tells In the News how Lemass was a great moderniser and as minister for industry and commerce when the airport opened in 1940, was a a supporter of facilitating air travel both in and out of the country.

The proposed legislation was introduced on Tuesday by Fianna Fáil TD Malcolm Byrne, who said the airport “owes much to his policies and foresight”.

So will the Seán Lemass Dublin International Airport Bill 2025 succeed? And why are we so reluctant to honour our former taoisigh? He points out that Cork’s Jack Lynch Tunnel is the only piece of State infrastructure named after a former leader.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Suzanne Brennan and John Casey. 

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Cardiovascular disease claims more women’s lives than breast cancer, while women are more than two times more likely than men to die after a heart attack. The risk of heart disease substantially increases during menopause and yet, women and their doctors often underestimate the severity of their symptoms.

Why is that?

Years of poor research into women’s cardiac health, combined with the perception often promoted through film and TV that heart attacks solely happen to men, has created a distorted image of this disease and resulted in a health system primarily designed to cater for the needs of men, not women.

For decades, scientific experts presumed the results of cardiac trials designed using the male anatomy would also hold true for women. Women’s hormonal fluctuations during periods and menopause often excluded them from heart disease trials.

And while research into heart disease among women has improved in the past decade, many women have no idea the risks they face, particularly during and after menopause.

So, what are the heart attack warning signs women need to watch out for? And what changes can they make early to try to avoid heart disease?

Today, on In The News, cardiovascular nurse Shirley Ingram reflects on her personal experience of suffering a heart attack. And Dr Sharon O’Donell and Dr Deidre Daly from Trinity College discuss how the university’s international Caramel project hopes to transform how women understand this disease.

Presented by Sorcha Pollak. Produced by Suzanne Brennan and Andrew McNair. 

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Irish shoppers have taken to bargain hunting with enthusiasm: a survey by PwC, which looked at Black Friday shopping habits in five European countries, found the Irish spend an average of €329, way more than our more frugal neighbours in Germany, France and Italy.

Two-thirds of that is online which opens the digital door for scammers to get in.

Irish Times consumer correspondent Conor Pope explains why Black Friday, with its “unbeatable bargains” and countdown clocks is a gift for scammers. He also tells how to beat the scammers at this distracting time of the year.

And are their bargains to be had? Pope advises the best time to buy and how to spend you money so you’ll get the best bargains.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Suzanne Brennan. 

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“Flying blind” and “budgeting like there’s no tomorrow” – the government’s management of the economy is being roundly criticised by the Irish Fiscal Advisory Council.

A group of Ranelagh residents have launched a legal challenge to the Metrolink project – with the potential to stall the long-awaited underground rail line.

Consumer Affairs correspondent Conor Pope is urging caution in the Black Friday online shopping frenzy.

The RDS has been renamed the Laya Arena in a new naming rights partnership, while a bill to rename Dublin Airport after this former Taoiseach has progressed in the Dáil.

Presented by Aideen Finnegan

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Danish immigration rules are strict. In 2013, the Danes instituted a so-called “jewellery law” whereby jewellery and valuables could be taken from refugees entering the country to pay for their keep. And while the measure has rarely been enforced, it is an example of government messaging aimed at deterring refugees from travelling to its borders.

Gaining residency rights takes longer than in other EU countries and family reunification is more difficult. Those who live in areas where more than 50 per cent of residents are deemed “non-Western” are refused family reunion. Failed asylum seekers are moved to deportation centres where the conditions are basic, the idea being they will self-deport rather than stay there.

As the UK’s Labour government cites Denmark as a model to be copied as it reforms its own immigration rules, EU states are increasingly looking northwards to the Danes for measures that stem arrivals and manage those already in the bloc.

Irish Times Europe correspondent Naomi O’Leary explains.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Suzanne Brennan. 

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The Irish Fiscal Advisory Council (Ifac) has found that the unprecedented surge in Irish exports this year (exports to the US rose by 153 per cent to €71bn between January and May) was almost entirely driven by shipments of these ingredients.

Ifac tracked about €36.4bn of this export surge to Indianapolis, where Eli Lilly is headquartered and where it has several manufacturing sites.

The jump in exports is expected to see the Irish economy expand by almost 11 per cent in GDP terms this year, which is almost certain to make it the fastest-growing advanced economy in the world in 2025.

So with such an over-reliance on foreign direct investment, notably in the pharma sector, at a time of tariff threats and uncertainty, how vulnerable is Ireland?

Irish Times economics correspondent Eoin Burke-Kennedy explains.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Suzanne Brennan and Andrew McNair. 

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The Minister for Justice and the Chief of Staff of the Defence Forces must hand over the names and contact details of people who may have blocked, or simply ignored, complaints of abuse within army ranks. Ellen Coyne has the details.

Nursing home owners want immigration rules relaxed so they can hire more workers from outside the EU, UK and European Economic Area. Martin Wall says they’re seeking changes to the so-called 50/50 rule.

Tech workers in Ireland think the general public has an unrealistic idea of who they are and what they really do. Three of them have been speaking to Hugh Linehan in the first of our series, The Professionals, which looks at Ireland through the lens of different categories of worker.

And winner of The Traitors Ireland, Vanessa Ogbonno, has been chatting to Tony Clayton-Lea for Me and My Money. She describes herself as a saver, but her most extravagant purchase ever was a bit of retail therapy to take the sting out of losing a football competition.

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And next week, in an auction timed for Black Friday, a haul of designer goods, ranging from Canada Goose jackets and Chanel handbags to Rolex watches and designer trainers, all bought with dirty money and all seized by the Cab, will go under the hammer – with the proceeds going to the exchequer.

It’s not all assets, the annual report shows that €13.3 million was collected by Revenue and just over half a million euro in Social Welfare recoveries.

So it was a good year for the head of the Cab, Det Chief Superintendent Michael Gubbins who explains how he and his team of experts do their work and why, for most of them, anonymity is vitally important.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by John Casey and Andrew McNair. 

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Northern Ireland will play Italy away, and if they win, they will be away again to Wales or Bosnia and Herzegovina.

The playoffs are knockout matches so it could all end on March 26th, but what if it doesn’t?

Can Ireland manager Heimir Hallgrímsson bring the team to the World Cup? That’s a dream that even the most diehard fans, looking at the dismal start to the qualifying campaign, had all but given up on. But then there was the win over Portugal – a victory that not only made a trip to the tournament a possibility but kept the manager in a job.

Irish Times soccer correspondent Gavin Cummiskey spoke to Hallgrímsson after the draw. On In the News he looks at the manager’s reaction to the draw, comments on our chances against the Czechs (good!) and explains how after a year of getting it wrong, everything came good for the Irish team.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by John Casey and Andrew McNair. 

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President Donald Trump could have released them to the public at any time – it was a presidential campaign promise of his – but he fought for months to stop lawmakers voting through a bipartisan petition to release the files.

That finally happened on Tuesday – Trump issued “permission” to Republicans to vote in favour of the release. Hours later the Senate reached a unanimous agreement to pass the measure, which would clear it for the president’s signature. He has said he will sign the release. But when might that happen? And what will be released? And why did he give up the fight to keep the files secret?

Scott Lucas, political analyst and professor at UCD’s Clinton Institute, explains.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Suzanne Brennan and Andrew McNair.

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Instead it has long been expected that his side gig as President of the Eurogroup since July 2020 would lead to a top job on the financial world stage - the IMF was mentioned regularly. The question was when might he hand in his notice.

Yesterday Donohoe announced that he had resigned his job and will start his new job as number two at the World Bank in Washington on Monday.

Irish Times political correspondent Ellen Coyne explains the political fallout to his move, while economics correspondent Eoin Burke-Kennedy outlines what the job will entail.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Suzanne Brennan. 

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At 87 and living alone in north London, the Kilkenny man who never married was sociable, charming and always dapper in his trilby hat. He was beloved by his nieces and nephews.

On May 6th he headed to his local supermarket for some shopping and, as he’d increasingly stopped cooking for himself, a takeaway of chips and sausages.

On his way home he was set upon by Peter Augustine (59) who stole his shopping and food, and having beaten the frail man, left him for dead.

Augustine’s two-week trial ended last week in the Old Bailey with a guilty verdict. He will be sentenced on November 28th.

For Irish Times London correspondent Mark Paul, Mackey’s murder had a particularly poignancy. He was one of a dwindling number of 1950s emigrants who left a very different Ireland to make their home in London.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Suzanne Brennan.

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Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs Simon Harris asked his Polish counterpart for help in resolving a child abduction case involving a young girl with dual Irish-Polish citizenship. Orla Ryan has the story.

A leading psychologist diagnoses the causes behind Ireland's lengthy waiting lists for child mental health services.

Winter arrives early this week in the form of an 'arctic air mass' - find out what to expect.

The eruption of joy following Ireland's World Cup qualification win over Hungary continued into Monday - especially on Portland Row, home of hat-trick hero Troy Parrott.

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The Republic’s newly elected president Catherine Connolly has made it clear the Irish language will play a central role during her time in office and says she wants to see the native tongue of this island flourish.

Meanwhile, north of the Border, the Irish language is also making headlines. In October, attendees at the annual Oireachtas na Samhna Irish-language festival heard Belfast was “leading the revival” of the language. New Irish-medium schools are springing up across the city to meet a surge in demand and Belfast is now hailed by many as Ireland’s largest urban Gaeltacht.

However, beneath all this buzz lies a battleground. The Irish language remains highly politically charged across Northern Ireland, with unionist leaders pushing back against what they see as an erosion of their identity and traditions. They argue the language is being imposed, without consent, into on daily lives.

From bilingual street signs to Irish on council property – every word is a flashpoint.

So why does the Irish language stir such fierce resistance in Northern Ireland?

Claims that the language is being “weaponised”, are unhelpful and only create further divisions, says Linda Ervine, one of the leading activists and teachers of the Irish language in Northern Ireland and manager of the Turas Irish language project in east Belfast.

“I try to say to people if you don’t like the language, it doesn’t symbolise who you are, that’s fine, I totally accept that,” Ms Ervine tells today’s In The News episode. “Nobody is removing the English. All we’re asking for is a shared space.”

“The language is part of the family of Celtic language, it’s spoken throughout the British Isles,” she says. “No matter our history, we have these shared, familial and linguistic ties to each other and I think that’s something to be celebrated, not something to be frightened of.”

Today, on In The News, what’s behind the revival of the Irish Language in Belfast, and why is it controversial?

Presented by Sorcha Pollak. Produced by Andrew McNair. 

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By 2030, it is committed to delivering 300,000 new homes. It’s an ambitious target.

But who is going to build these new homes and how can that target be met given successive governments’ failure to meet far more modest goals?

Will private developers be tempted to ramp up the delivery of apartment schemes? And given the acute skills shortage in the construction industry, where will the builders – the real hard-hat wearers – come from? And what about Ireland’s creaking infrastructure - the water and electricity needed to make building possible?

The shame of record-breaking homelessness figures means a move to solve this aspect of the housing crisis is a key plank of the new plan.

Irish Times Political Correspondent Ellen Coyne was at the plan’s launch. She joins In The News to discuss these issues.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by John Casey and Andrew McNair. 

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An estimated 150,000 people have been killed, and 14 million people displaced, since the country was plunged into civil war in April 2023 after a power struggle broke out between the country’s army and a powerful paramilitary group called the Rapid Support Forces (RSF).

Last month, the RSF captured the city of El Fasher, the last major urban centre in Darfur held by the army and its allies. Hundreds of thousands of civilians were left trapped in desperate famine-like conditions with no access to food, medicine or relief supplies.

The city’s civilians have also been subjected to mass killings, and ethnic and sexual violence, while pregnant women are giving birth on the streets after the last remaining maternity hospital was looted and destroyed.

Why do so many in the world continue to the turn a blind eye to the world’s largest humanitarian crisis?

And is a ceasefire even possible in a region plagued by decades of instability, mass displacement and destruction?

Today, on In The News, how Sudan became a killing zone.

New York Times chief Africa correspondent Declan Walsh discusses the devastating effects of Sudan’s civil war, the foreign powers funding the crisis and the measures needed to end this conflict.

Presented by Sorcha Pollak. Produced by Andrew McNair. 

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The two men were arrested on Co Laois on Tuesday during a cross-Border antiterrorism operation and were charged with possession of explosives.

A video found by gardaí on one of the men’s phones revealed a ‘practice’ recording of what the extreme right wing group intended to release after its planned attack on Galway mosque.

A major inquiry is now under way to determine how long the alleged plot was in the planning, what role others may have played and to identify all four men who appear in the video.

Irish Times crime and security editor Conor Lally has the latest details. 

Presented by Sorcha Pollak. Produced by Suzanne Brennan.

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Brazilian organisers have insisted this will be the “COP of implementation” where measures needed to combat the climate crisis will take precedence over more promises and never-ending negotiations.

This year’s global summit marks a decade since the highly lauded Paris Agreement – the landmark agreement signed by almost 200 countries and designed to avoid the worst consequences of climate change.

Its main goal was to limit future global temperature rises to 1.5 degrees Celsius above ‘pre-industrial’ levels. And while some progress has been made, ten years on from this legally binding agreement, emissions are still rising and UN secretary general António Guterres has acknowledged it is now “inevitable” that humanity will overshoot this 1.5 cap.

What exactly do world leaders hope to achieve over the coming fortnight?

How will the absence of a US-led delegation impact plans for cutting global emissions? And in a world deeply distracted by war, defence and ideological divisions, can China and the EU take the lead in pushing climate measures back up the list of international priorities?

Irish Times Climate and Science correspondent Caroline O’Doherty joins the podcast from Belém to discuss whether this year’s climate negotiations will move beyond plans and into concrete action.

Presented by Sorcha Pollak. Produced by Suzanne Brennan. 

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While the Government promises to address the supply issue, is there anything that needs to change about the way we buy houses? 

In the UK, a major reform of the house-buying system has been proposed by the Labour Government. The plan aims to cut costs, reduce delays and make the whole process more efficient for buyers and sellers. Under the new plan, sellers would have to provide key information about the house upfront. Binding contracts could also be introduced earlier. It would cut the costs for first time buyers and speed up the process by up to four weeks - so should Ireland follow suit?

In today’s episode, Ciarán Mulqueen, who runs the social media account Crazy House Prices, takes a look at how the process works in other countries and whether something similar could be introduced here.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Suzanne Brennan

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This year, with the help of the writer Joanna Cronin, readers are treated to a plethora of options for every occasion from new and quirky eateries to heritage restaurants which have stood the test of time.

It’s also an exciting period for the Irish dining scene.

In February, Dublin will host the Michelin star ceremony for the first time, the convention for unveiling new Michelin stars. And the speculation about awards in the Republic is electric.

Front and centre in Corinna and Joanne’s choices this year, they say, is supply. Those menu’s which utilise the best of home grown Irish produce.

So where are the top restaurants in Ireland, and what’s on the menu?

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Suzanne Brennan and Andrew McNair.

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But his win, along with the election of several other Democrats in races across the country, has forced Trump to start taking seriously the threat of a Democratic resurgence in next year's midterm elections. And Democrats are starting to feel hopeful, even if Mamdani's election poses questions about what the party has become and exactly how it should take on Trump.

Keith Duggan reports from Washington.

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This was at a time when he was co-presenting the political podcast Path to Power and doing stand in shifts on Newstalk radio.

The story gained momentum in the days that followed as news emerged that senior Fianna Fáil politicians, including Taoiseach Micheál Martin, also received media training from Mr Yates.

How has this steady trickle of revelations played out in Leinster House? What does this controversy tell us about the entanglement of Ireland’s media and political elites?

And how does the Irish media handle commercial and political conflicts of interest?

Today, on In The News, how Ivan Yates’ links to Fianna Fáil have landed him, and the party, in hot water.

Irish Times media columnist and host of Inside Politics podcast Hugh Linehan discusses the political fallout from this controversy and how it might impact public trust in the media.

Presented by Sorcha Pollak. Produced by Andrew McNair and Suzanne Brennan. 

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In July, the disgraced sportsman pleaded guilty to ten counts of deception involving thirteen individuals. 

It’s a stunning fall from grace for the Kilkenny man, who was once the most celebrated hurler in the country. 

For years, Carey spun a web of lies, convincing friends, acquaintances, and even strangers that he was battling terminal cancer and needed large sums of money for life-saving treatment. 

At times, his stories were meticulously crafted, rich in detail. Sometimes they were just spur of the moment pleas for cash.   

In today's episode journalist and author of The Dodger, Eimear Ní Bhraonáin maps out Carey’s decade long deception and explains how he got away with his crimes for so long.

The Dodger: DJ Carey and the Great Betrayal published by Merrion Press is out now.

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They believe the woman was 70 years or older when she died, that she was 157cm tall and had a large frame. They think she wore dentures made in the 1960s while she also suffered from arthritis. Carbon dating suggests she died between 1985 and 1987.

What they don’t know is her name.

They commissioned Prof Michelle Vitali, a director of the Institute of Forensic Sciences at Pennsylvania Western University and a specialist in forensic illustration, to draw an image of the dead woman. She works pro bono for police forces in the US and provided her services free in the Cork case.

Vitali explains to In the News the process she used to create an image from the woman’s skull which might help jog memories. It is not, she stresses, a portrait of the dead woman, rather a way to illustrate her features. But could it really identify the dead woman and has it worked in the past?

Irish Times southern correspondent Barry Roche gives the background to this sad case.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Declan Conlon and Andrew McNair. 

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When it comes to events in Saipan where the Irish team were acclimatising before heading to Japan for their first game in the 2002 World Cup, everyone has an opinion. You’re either Team Roy or Team Mick.

A new movie that captures the simmering tension and eventual blow up between Republic of Ireland manager Mick McCarthy and team captain Roy Keane will hit our screens on January 1st. But already Saipan has been seen on the international film festival circuit, garnering glowing reviews.

Keane is played by Éanna Hardwicke and McCarthy by Steve Coogan – a challenge given how familiar both men are in the public mind. Does it work? And does it capture the tension and the shock waves that Keane’s decision to walk out on the team caused.

Irish Times consumer correspondent Conor Pope got a preview and says that going in to the cinema he knew he’d be traumatised by Saipan – and he was.

Pope tells In the News why the film will open old wounds for many people and how he left the cinema “feeling shaken and sad and weighed down by what might have been”.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by John Casey and Andrew McNair.

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The GP prescribed a diaphragm and spermicidal jelly to help prevent pregnancy. These had to be imported and were seized by customs with the couple told that if they attempted to import contraceptive devices again, they could be prosecuted.

The couple went to the High Court in 1972 in an attempt to overturn a 1935 ban on the importation of contraceptives.

It was struck out and amid a tide of publicity, the couple appealed to the Supreme Court.

In 1973 they won, with the judge overturning the 1935 Act which prohibited the importation of contraceptives, with the ruling paving the way for vastly improved reproductive choice for women.

The case has been seen as a turning point in society’s perception of the separation of the roles of church and State.

May McGee, was 81 when she died peacefully at Beaumont Hospital in Tuesday surrounded by her family. Shay died in January 2024.

Irish Times journalist Ellen Coyne explains the impact of the couple’s brave decision to take on the State in a very different Ireland.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Suzanne Brennan. 

This podcast was edited to amend a reference to Seán MacBride. He was a member of the IRA, not the Provisional IRA.

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Soon after, a farmer in Normandy in northern France, who had seen news reports of the dead animal heads appearing around the city, contacted police to say two people driving a vehicle with Serbian number plates had purchased ten pigs heads from his farm.

Further investigations by French authorities found the pigs heads had been placed outside the mosques by foreign nationals with the “clear intention of causing unrest within the nation”.

This provocative stunt was just one of a range of bizarre and potentially lethal incidents over recent months that have been linked to a Russian campaign to inflame divisions and spread fear across Europe. Other incidents tracked back to Russian intelligence include the burning of a Warsaw shopping centre and a warehouse in London; exploding parcels in Leipzig and Birmingham and the recent disruption of airports with drones and smuggler balloons in Norway, Denmark and Lithuania.

Who is carrying out this wide array of sabotage-style stunts and do the criminals responsible even know they’re being hired by Russian officials?

What is Russia’s long-term goal in fostering instability and discord across Europe?

And how is Russia targeting Ireland as part of this strategy?

Today, on In The News, how Russia’s hybrid war is sowing chaos across Europe.

Irish Times Europe correspondent Naomi O’Leary discusses Moscow’s campaign of sabotage and espionage, which has steadily intensified since Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022.

Presented by Sorcha Pollak. Produced by Andrew McNair. 

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When universities closed to women in late 2022, Haidary joined an underground “resistance” network teaching maths, physics and English to girls.

Ms Haidary, who is editor of the Zan Times, now reports from her new home in Pakistan. She talks to Sorcha Pollak about the oppressive reality facing women inside Afghanistan. But while the situation is grim, some are pushing back.

Plus: Stefan Smith, spokesperson for the UN’s assistance mission in Afghanistan, on international efforts to engage with Taliban rulers.

Presented by Sorcha Pollak. Produced by Andrew McNair. 

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It was the first-ever trial of a former British soldier accused of killing unarmed civilians during the massacre.

The veteran, referred to as Soldier F for legal reasons, was accused of the murders of James Wray and William McKinney during a civil rights march in the city on January 30th, 1972.

By the end of that dreadful day, 13 unarmed civilians had been shot dead by the Parachute Regiment while 17 were left with injuries.

So how was the verdict received in the packed courtroom, particularly by the Bloody Sunday families whose fight for justice has endured for more than a century. A UK public inquiry had already found that the army unlawfully killed 13 people in Derry on that day, so why did the prosecution against this former paratrooper fail?

Irish Times Northern editor Freya McClements was in court for the verdict.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Andrew McNair and John Casey.

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Known as the Lucky Dip Gang, these groups of young, low-level criminals focus on burglaries and vehicle theft. These often failed and haphazard attempts to steal bikes and cars contrast starkly with the other side of the burglary trade, which is dominated by tight-knit, dangerous organised gangs known for their forensic and meticulous planning.

But if the Lucky Dip Gang is running riot across the Greater Dublin Area, and organised burglary gangs are so active across the country, why have burglaries fallen by almost 65 per cent in a decade?

Today, on In The News, Irish Times crime and security editor Conor Lally discusses the TikTok inspired crime trend among young offenders in Dublin, the reasons some teenagers are pushed into joining more serious gangs and the significant drop in burglaries nationwide over the past ten years.

And what measures should homeowners take to protect their home to deter burglars and avoid from break-in?

Presented by Sorcha Pollak. Produced by Declan Conlon and Andrew McNair

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They had gathered in response to news that a man had been arrested in connection with the alleged sexual assault of a 10-year old Irish girl outside the centre, which is home to mostly Ukrainians but also international protection applicants.

The man, a failed asylum seeker in his 20s, has been in the State for six years and is the subject of a deportation order since March 2025.

There had already been protests by locals throughout the summer following news that the Government intended buying the hotel – Ireland’s largest with more than 750 bedrooms – and turning it into a State-run, permanent asylum centre. The sale, for €148 million, has now been finalised. But Tuesday’s protest was very different, not least because many of those present were not local.

So who were they and what did they want?

And how did the Garda manage and then diffuse such an incendiary situation? Has the force learned from the Dublin riots two years ago?

Irish Times crime and security editor Conor Lally was at Citywest and he reports on how events unfolded.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Andrew McNair.

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Prince Andrew, who has always denied any wrongdoing, and who reached a financial settlement with Giuffre in 2022, announced last week he would voluntarily no longer use his titles, including the Duke of York. He said he had made the decision following a discussion with King Charles, his family, and in consultation with Prince William.

Meanwhile, MPs in Britain moved on Tuesday to lodge a parliamentary motion to strip Prince Andrew of his dukedom, with pressure also mounting on the British government to address the prince’s luxury residence in Windsor. It was recently revealed the King’s younger brother has not paid rent on the Royal Lodge for more than two decades.

The House of Commons, which is not permitted to discuss issues that reflect badly on Britain’s royal family, has maintained an uneasy silence as the Prince Andrew scandal continues to grow legs.

Why are UK politicians not allowed to debate Royal scandals, or any issues that reflect badly on Royals, in Westminster? And is that about to change?

Irish Times London correspondent Mark Paul discusses the latest revelations from Giuffre’s memoir and examines the steps needed for Westminster to take stronger action against the disgraced prince.

Presented by Sorcha Pollak, produced by Suzanne Brennan and Andrew McNair.

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Four thieves had managed to access the building via the first floor balcony facing the river Seine. Seven minutes later they escaped on motorbikes carrying priceless French crown jewels.

The robbery has sparked outrage across the French political spectrum – the country’s president Emmanuel Macron called the raid “an attack on our history”, while the leader of the far-right National Rally party Jordan Bardella said it was an “intolerable humiliation”.

The heist has also prompted serious questions about the security needed in high profile museums and art galleries, and the increasingly brazen nature of criminal art robberies.

How exactly did these thieves manage to steal priceless artefacts from one of the most secure museums in Europe in broad daylight? And why are the French authorities now racing against the clock to track down the missing items?

BBC Paris Correspondent Hugh Schofield discusses how this audacious heist was pulled off and whether the jewels will ever be seen again.

Presented by Sorcha Pollak. Produced by Andrew McNair. 

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And once they have a name and number, it’s game on, with highly-trained fraudsters working the phones to persuade victims to part with their money via bogus investment “opportunities”.

Analysis by The Irish Times has identified 31 Irish victims who lost a combined total of nearly €300,000. This includes a 76-year-old man who lost €61,720, and a high-ranking diplomat who lost more than €31,000.

Details of the transactions are contained in a vast data leak - including recordings of the phones calls - from a Georgian scam call centre which was provided to The Irish Times by the Organised Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OOCRP), a non-government investigative journalism organisation.

Irish Times crime and security correspondent Conor Gallagher is part of that project and he explains to In the News exactly how the scams work. And he talks to some of the Irish victims.

But how do these scammers collect the phone numbers they call; how do they identify their victims and what sophisticated sales techniques do they use to persuade unsuspecting victims to “invest” in the bogus schemes?

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Declan Conlon and Suzanne Brennan.

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The prosecution has laid out its case: alleging that Lawrence worked “as a unit” with her South African boyfriend Neville van der Westhuizen to kill O’Connor, a drug dealer and his friend Keegan.

Van der Westhuizen was in considerable debt to O’Connor.

It was further alleged that Lawrence and her boyfriend had “spoken openly” about “the murders and disposing of the bodies”.

The jury has already heard from the landlord of the remote Co Meath lakeside cottage where the accused and her boyfriend were living at the time of the murder. He testified how they had asked to borrow a boat with an engine and had done so.

Set to last until November, the judge sent the jury away on Tuesday due to a medical issue with a witness but the court heard on Thursday that the trial would continue.

Court reporter Alison O’Riordan has been following the trial.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by John Casey. 

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And if anabolic steroids, human growth hormone (HGH), or testosterone supplements show up in his system next May when he competes in Las Vegas, the organisers will congratulate him for playing by the rules.

The Enhanced Games dubbed the Steroid Olympics – was dreamed up by Australian businessman Aron D’Souza as a sporting event that lets competitors maximise their performance by doping.

Ryan, who was the first swimmer to compete in three Olympics for Ireland, says the decision to join the Enhanced Games is financial. He will, he says, be “making over six figures for nine months and then potentially making over $600,000 when it comes down the line”.

But Wada (World Anti-Doping Agency) rules exist not just to level the playing field for all athletes but also to protect them from the health impacts of doping. So isn’t the 31 year-old worried?

Irish Times sports writer Malachy Clerkin talked to him from his new training base in Nevada.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Suzanne Brennan. 

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Romance scams are not new – lonely people have always been targeted by criminals. But with the omnipresence of social media in people’s daily lives, and the rapid development of AI, criminal gangs are using more sophisticated methods than ever before to exploit the human need for connection, trust and affection.

The sheer extent and impact of these scams remains unknown because many people are too embarrassed to report the relationship, or their lost funds, to the authorities. They are often also left heartbroken after truly believing they had found their soul mate.

One Irish woman in her 60s, who recently lost more than €291,000 through a sinister romance scam to a man who claimed to love and want to marry her, shared her experience with The Irish Times this week.

On today’s In The News episode Conor Pope, Irish Times consumer affairs correspondent, shares the story of Mary* who has been left with huge debts, and potentially serious legal implications, after being financially exploited, and emotionally manipulated, by a man who called himself Donald.

What are the red flags people should watch out for if they begin a relationship online?

And can further steps be taken by authorities to track down the criminal gangs behind this financial fraud?

Today, the story of one woman who lost everything through an elaborate romance scam.

Presented by Sorcha Pollak. Produced by Andrew McNair.

*Pseudonym requested to protect woman’s identity 

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Meanwhile, about 2,000 Palestinian prisoners – including 1,700 from Gaza who have been held by Israel without charge – were released and reunited with family.

The return of hostages and release of prisoners is all part of the first phase of Donald’s Trump’s peace plan for Gaza.

Trump, who spoke before the Israeli parliament in Jerusalem on Monday, told cheering lawmakers that the “long and painful nightmare is finally over” and that the agreement marked a “historic dawn of a new Middle East”.

But is the US president correct? Will both sides honour the agreement and what will the next stage of this peace plan look like?

And when so many lives have been lost, where do Palestinians begin when it comes to rebuilding the Gaza Strip?

Irish Times contributors Mark Weiss and Michael Jansen discuss how Trump’s peace plan will work and what the future holds for Palestinians.

Presented by Sorcha Pollak. Produced by Declan Conlon and Suzanne Brennan. 

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In 2011 he said his tenure would be “a presidency of ideas”. But what are they and where in his background and in his impressive and varied pre-Áras career did they come from?

And how has his outspokenness on a wide range of subjects, from foreign affairs to army pay, been received by successive governments? To what extent did his personal popularity insulate him from criticism and even censure when he was perceived to have overstepped the boundaries of the role?

The 84 year-old’s appeal, notably among young people, has secured a prominent place for him in Irish popular culture inspiring a range of “miggledy” memorabilia from T-shirts to tea cosies.But while his public image is that of a warm, affable elder statesman in a tweed suit with a ready smile and an ability to connect with everyone who comes in contact with, his private persona is somewhat different according to Irish Times journalist Naomi O’Leary who has written a long profile of this very popular, effective President.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Suzanne Brennan. 

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The failure to repay a debt – and a landlord’s debt at that – had caused a sensation when news of it was reported on Friday.

Gavin was Martin’s man – his “celebrity” non-party pick announced after a summer of speculation.

But from his first outing it was clear that he lacked the charisma and communication skills that are baseline requirements in any political campaign. And for a celebrity candidate he was remarkably unknown.

Many in Martin’s party were simply puzzled by his choice while also being angry at a process in which they felt sidelined.

Wednesday provided a new twist when the tenant outed himself on his popular crime podcast as Niall Donald, deputy editor of the Sunday World.

Then on Wednesday evening before a five-hour parliamentary party meeting, a shaken Martin apologised for the disaster which has left party members furious and embarrassed.

So how did Micheál Martin get here; how did he make this massive misstep in choosing Gavin and has he set the clock ticking on the end of his career leading Fianna Fáil.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by John Casey.

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As he has done every year on the day after the budget Irish Times personal finance expert and assistant business editor Dominic Coyle put a call-out to readers for their own queries and then he answered them.

For In the News he picks out the ones that exercised people the most and explains how he answered.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Suzanne Brennan. 

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But the budget did deliver some help for some groups. Conor Pope runs through the main points.

Plus: Cliff Taylor on why, eleven months after a general election campaign that featured many spending promises, the Government has instead decided to tighten its belt.

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And while this price hike may help reduce smoking levels in Irish society, and improve the overall health of the population, it is also driving Ireland’s rapidly growing black market tobacco business.

More than one in four cigarettes smoked in Ireland are now sold through the black market, costing the exchequer around €600 million in lost revenue annually.

And it’s not just the Irish authorities who are keen to end this booming underground activity – Big Tobacco companies are now hiring investigators in Ireland to collect data on how and where this business takes place.

On today’s In The News episode, consumer affairs correspondent Conor Pope discusses the day he recently spent shadowing an investigative team hired by Japan Tobacco International, one of the biggest tobacco companies in the world, to scour Dublin for sellers of illegal tobacco.

Who is selling this tobacco, where is it produced and what do we know about the criminals behind this illegal cigarette chain?

And what is the point of tobacco companies tracking down small-time street dealers who are purely cogs in a much larger, multimillion euro, illicit tobacco-producing machine?

Presented by Sorcha Pollak. Produced by Suzanne Brennan. 

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Earlier today, Jack Horgan Jones and Ellen Coyne talked to Hugh Linehan on our sister podcast Inside Politics about the affair. In the News will be back with another regular episode tomorrow.

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Shouldn’t the various medical registration bodies have robust recording and information sharing systems that would make that impossible. Most patients will assume that to be the case but a new global investigation has found serious flaws in the system.

And it is happening in Ireland: 11 doctors who have faced serious sanctions in the UK, including being struck off, remain registered in Ireland.

In each case, the UK sanction was not recorded on the doctor’s publicly available record published by the Medical Council.

The information comes from the Organised Crime and Corruption Reporting Project, which in the past has investigated transnational criminal gangs and drug cartels but in recent months has turned its attention to doctor registration.

Irish Times crime and security correspondent Conor Gallagher joined international journalists from more than 50 other media outlets to uncover this very real threat to patient safety. He explains the findings of the report particularly as they relate to Ireland.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Suzanne Brennan and Andrew McNair.

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The 18.8km rail line, expected to cost more than €10 billion, was first proposed a quarter of a century ago and is anticipated to begin operations in the mid-2030s.

Travelling mostly underground, the remote-controlled, driverless trains will run every three minutes from Swords in north Dublin to Charlemont close to Ranelagh in south Dublin. The route will have 16 stops serving areas including Dublin Airport, Ballymun, Glasnevin, Phibsborough and the city centre.

A trip from Swords to the city centre is expected to take about 25 minutes, while journeys from the airport to the city will take about 20 minutes.

But what happens if there is a judicial challenge to the planning permission? And what if “unknown, unknown” issues arise and the bill doubles as has been imagined? And when will the first passengers hop on board?

Irish Times Dublin editor Olivia Kelly explains.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Andrew McNair. 

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For 30 hours, her mother Julieanne had been unable to get in contact with her daughter who had travelled over the Border to visit her boyfriend. Increasingly worried, she got in the car to drive to Monaghan to find her.

While she was in the car she received a call from the Garda with the news every parent dreads. An Garda Síochána initially determined that the young woman had fallen and that her death was an accident.

However, her parents John and Julieanne believe that there is so much about their daughter’s death that needs to be explained, not least the 93 injuries found on her body. They have been advocating for Kelly since that dreadful day.

Julieanne tells In The News the issues the family has with how Kelly’s death was handled and how The Katie Trust has been helping her; while former PSNI officer and founder of The Katie Trust James Brannigan explains how his organisation is helping so many bereaved families who have been left, like the Kellys, with questions.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Suzanne Brennan. 

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This will involve listening to 2 short versions of a news briefing podcast and taking part in an online forum to discuss your reaction. You will be free to take part and contribute to the discussion at times that suit you over a period of a number of days. If selected to take part, and in return for your participation, you will receive a €30 One4All digital gift voucher.

If you would like to take part please complete this form with your details. We'll aim to select as many as possible to participate.

On Monday evening, the three candidates for the Irish presidency gathered together for their first live debate on Virgin Media Television. But, was it a really a debate?

Rather than standing, Catherine Connolly, Heather Humphreys and Jim Gavin sat around a table and delivered a series of lines and scripts for over an hour. To many, it just appeared to be a longer version of Virgin’s regular weeknight politics show.

The conversation was largely polite, restrained and non-combative and ultimately made for quite dull TV.

How did the three presidential candidates fare in the live TV studio setting and who came out on top?

And what do the Irish presidential candidates need to change about their communication style to bring some spark to the race for the Áras and inspire us, the public, to cast our vote in their favour?

Today, on In The News, what does it take to win a presidential debate?

Lorcan Nyhan, head of training at the Communications Clinic who has previously worked with Irish politicians on presentation and communication, breaks down what the candidates need to change about their debating style to bring more energy and public interest to the campaign for president.

Presented by Sorcha Pollak. Produced by Declan Conlon and Andrew McNair. 

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This will involve listening to 2 short versions of a news briefing podcast and taking part in an online forum to discuss your reaction. You will be free to take part and contribute to the discussion at times that suit you over a period of a number of days. If selected to take part, and in return for your participation, you will receive a €30 One4All digital gift voucher.

If you would like to take part please complete this form with your details. We'll aim to select as many as possible to participate.

In the early hours of Sunday morning, Russia launched a big drones and missile attack on the Ukrainian capital, killing at least four people. Meanwhile, more than 1,500km to the West, Denmark reported drone sightings over military sites in its own country.

These latest Danish reports follow a series of drone sightings across Europe in recent weeks, including in Poland, Germany and Romania, as well as Russian fighter jets violating Estonia airspace. These incursions have caused international chaos and raised concerns over the security of northern Europe and its vulnerability to air attacks from Russia.

Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskiy has said the recent drone aggression across European countries is proof that Vladimir Putin is planning to expand Russia’s war into the European Union.

And while Russia’s foreign minister Sergey Lavrov says Russia has no intention of attacking European Union or Nato member states, he also says it is prepared to act if provoked.

Europe is moving forward with plans for a drone wall and increasing defence spending, but is that enough?

Today, on In The News, is Europe already at war with Russia?

The Guardian newspaper foreign correspondent Luke Harding discusses the growth of Russian interference and provocation across Europe and Moscow’s belief that it is already at war with the West.

Presented by Sorcha Pollak. Produced by John Casey. 

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While DNA analysis has yet to be concluded, the remains are believed to be those of Daniel Aruebose.

He was last seen when he was 3 1/2 years of age and had not been seen in four years.

The discovery of his body was a significant step in the investigation into his disappearance but the initial results of the postmortem have been a setback as no cause of death could be determined. So what happens now?

Irish Times crime and security editor Conor Lally, who broke the story of the discovery of the child’s remains, explains how the investigation might now proceed.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Suzanne Brennan.

The Irish Times is continuing to develop its podcast offering and would like to invite some of our current listeners to take part in a research study to listen to, and discuss, a new podcast pilot.

This will involve listening to 2 short versions of a news briefing podcast and taking part in an online forum to discuss your reaction. You will be free to take part and contribute to the discussion at times that suit you over a period of a number of days. If selected to take part, and in return for your participation, you will receive a €30 One4All digital gift voucher.

If you would like to take part please complete this form with your details. We'll aim to select as many as possible to participate.

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The oral agreement he had reached during a kitchen-table meeting was, as far as he was concerned, binding.

When the owners then sold it to someone else, Magnier went to court in a bid to make the them honour their deal.

What followed was a 19-day court case that revealed the details of the dispute and how determined Magnier was to secure the property.

But why did he go to such lengths? Ronan McGreevy reports on the case.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Declan Conlon. 

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The organisers said at least 13 explosions were heard on and around boats and objects were dropped on at least 10 boats from drones or aircraft.

The 51-vessel flotilla carrying food and essential supplies has about 500 international volunteers, including Irish pro-Palestine activists.

Italy is to send a naval ship to come to the vessels’ assistance while Spain’s prime minister Pedro Sánchez said his country is sending a warship to protect the flotilla.

“The government of Spain insists that international law be respected and that the right of our citizens should be respected to sail through the Mediterranean in safe conditions,” he said.

Sinn Féin Senator Chris Andrews is among 22 Irish participants on the flotilla and he has called on the Government to protect its citizens on the flotilla and “as a matter of urgency, they need to arrange for an observer vessel to accompany the flotilla to ensure Israel does not violate the human rights of its participants”.

So what will happen next? Irish Times reporter Naomi O’Leary, who has been talking to people on the flotilla, explains.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by John Casey and Andrew McNair. 

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An English tourist was hospitalised on Saturday night after he was stabbed in Temple Bar and on Sunday, a 17-year-old teenager was left in a critical condition after he was repeatedly stabbed on Dublin’s Eden Quay.

These latest attacks will undoubtedly reinforce beliefs that the streets of the Irish capital are becoming unsafe. They also come in the wake of a surge in attacks against immigrants, particularly the Indian community.

Minister for Justice Jim O’Callaghan recently pushed back against any suggestions that Dublin was unsafe, arguing that the capital city is actually becoming safer. In contrast, Sinn Féin leader Mary Lou McDonald said earlier this year that people living, working and visiting the city “have been robbed of their sense of safety”.

In today's episode, Irish Times crime and security editor Conor Lally joins Sorcha Pollak to discuss the latest crime figures in the capital and how recent assaults are impacting people's perception of personal safety.

Produced by Suzanne Brennan and Declan Conlon. 

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How have the three candidates backed by political parties – Connolly, Gavin and Humphreys – fared so far in their bid to become the next Irish head of state and what bumps in the road have they faced in their race for the Áras?

Plus: at the time of recording, independent candidate Maria Steen was still in the hunt for the backing of 20 Oireachtas members. What would she bring to the race?

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Participants in Cearta, the first major Irish language demonstration in over a decade, demanded action from Government on housing, education and funding for Gaeltacht communities and Irish speakers.

Their calls come at a time when the Irish language is clearly enjoying a bit of a moment. Three years ago, the Irish-language film An Cailín Ciúin experience global success and acclaim after it was shortlisted for an Oscar. And the worldwide popularity of Northern Irish rap group Kneecap, has brought the language to the masses in a way never seen before.

But, despite this cultural momentum and growing appreciation of the national language, are policymakers doing enough to ensure its survival?

Irish Times Irish language editor Éanna Ó Caollaí discusses the historic turnout at last weekend’s CEARTA protest and whether an Gaeilge’s pop culture moment could translate into how we fund, support and perceive the national language.

Presented by Sorcha Pollak. Produced by Suzanne Brennan and Andrew McNair. 

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It is not known exactly what was bought or what it will be used for but the purchase was made under the Office of Government Procurement (OGP) framework. That means other State agencies such as Revenue, Fiosrú and Military Intelligence can use the new Israeli tech.

It is not the first time the State has bought technology – including military technology – from Israel.

Cognyte’s flagship offering is what it calls an “investigations analytics platform”, a powerful piece of software capable of amalgamating masses of data in one place. It uses facial recognition, artificial intelligence and large language models to, in Cognyte’s words, “reveal hidden insights and deeper context” for investigators.

So if that is what the Garda bought, how might the force use it?

The Irish Times Crime and Security Correspondent Conor Gallagher explains.

Gallagher also looks as some of the controversies the Israeli company has been involved in: from Brazil, where it was cited in the trial of disgraced Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro, to the Netherlands, where the justice ministry has come under fire for buying a new telephone and data-tapping system for the police from the controversial defence company without informing parliament.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Declan Conlon. 

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Confirming that skeletal remains had been discovered, Garda HQ also named the boy as Daniel Aruebose.

It is the first time he has been named since his disappearance and assumed death was placed under investigation three weeks ago.

Conor Lally reports from the scene on what is known and is yet to be uncovered about the tragic case.

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The previous night, Mr Hayes issued an apology for wearing brown make-up on his face and hands while dressed up as former US president Barack Obama, at a party 16 years ago.

Mr Hayes was previously suspended from the Social Democrats last December after it emerged he had issued misleading information about when he sold his shares in Palantir, a company he worked with which has been linked to the Israeli military. He was readmitted to the party over the summer.

Ms Cairns said she was “hugely disappointed and annoyed” about the ‘blackface’ incident but has not yet revealed whether her colleague will face disciplinary actions.

How will the Social Democrats respond to this latest scandal and could they suspend the Dublin Bay South TD for a second time?

And how has the Social Democrats fared as an opposition political party during its leader’s maternity leave?

Today, on In The News, Holly Cairns’s return from maternity leave was spoiled by another embarrassing controversy involving Social Democrats TD Eoin Hayes.

Irish Times political correspondent Jack Horgan-Jones discusses the fallout from the Hayes photograph and Cairns’ return to party leadership.

Presented by Sorcha Pollak. Produced by Andrew McNair and Declan Conlon.

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The verdict brings an end to Brazil’s historical leniency in dealing with military men who have tried to overthrow democratically elected governments.

Thousands of Brazilians took to the streets to celebrate the sentencing, while the leaders of neighbouring countries like Chile and Colombia paid tribute to the country’s democratic institutions.

However, some members of the Brazilian congress immediately embarked on efforts to secure an amnesty for Bolsonaro and his co-conspirators.

And Brazilian diplomats continue to anxiously await a formal response from the US, where president Donald Trump said he was “very unhappy” with the verdict and US secretary of state Marco Rubio described the trial as a “witch hunt”.

Will Trump, who has already imposed 50 per cent tariffs on Brazil, impose further sanctions in response to the conviction?

Can Bolsonaro’s supporters secure an amnesty for the divisive former leader? And what does this all mean for next year’s presidential election in Brazil?

Today, on In The News, Brazil’s Bolsonaro is facing 27 years in prison, but will he do his jail time?

Irish Times South America contributor Tom Hennigan discusses the national and international reaction to the Bolsonaro trial and verdict.

Presented by Sorcha Pollak. Produced by Declan Conlon and Andrew McNair. 

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Since May the Pope has used his Wednesday audience to condemn the actions of Isreal in Gaza and to call for peace in Ukraine. What he has chosen to wear and where to live has signalled a return to tradition – but as Irish Times Europe correspondent Naomi O’Leary explains he’s also spoken about the dangers and the promise of AI.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Declan Conlon. 

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Hoping to strengthen his centrist alliance he dissolved the National Assembly triggering an election. The result has been chaos – a legislature with no dominant political bloc in power and leading this week to France naming its fourth prime minister in 12 months and riots on the streets of Paris.

At the centre of the political chaos is the threat of austerity budgets. France is deep in debt and a succession of Macron-appointment prime ministers have proposed budgets with tax hikes and deep cuts.

On Monday, prime minister François Bayrou was ousted by a decisive vote after he proposed a tough budget. By Wednesday, Macron had appointed a replacement, Sébastien Lecornu.

The problem for the next government, Lecornu’s, is that a budget still needs to be passed and securing the backing of a very divided parliament will be difficult.

The world’s stage does see not much of French prime ministers because the president, Macron, holds substantial powers over foreign policy and European affairs.

So does this open the door to a snap election? And how damaging is this for Macron that his own country is in chaos while he bestrides the stage, positioning himself as a powerful European leader.

Naomi O’Leary, Irish Times European correspondent, explains a bleak week in French politics.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by John Casey. 

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On Wednesday, now aged 31 and a father of two young children, Kirk was once again at a university campus to debate and spread his socially conservative viewpoint.

A roof-top sniper shot him dead in what is being viewed as a politically motivated assassination.

In those 13 years, the young man had become one of the most influential voices in US politics and well-known media personality.

Kirk’s ability to galvanise young people to vote Republican, through his rallies, prolific social media posts, daily podcast, TV appearances and website led to Donald Trump crediting him with being one of a handful of people who helped secure his 2024 election win.

His murder, captured on camera, has shocked the United States and the reaction from the president and his supporters has been quick and heartfelt.

But who was he and how did he become one of Trump’s most avid supporters and trusted confidants?

Irish Times Washington correspondent Keith Duggan explains.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Declan Conlon. 

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Politicians say online trolling and verbal abuse now goes with the territory; dealing with it is part of the job.

Some have also had to face threats to their families with those against Harris being the latest.

It has prompted a debate about the growing security risks faced by our politicians.

But what can the Garda do, and typically who makes these threats and why?

Irish Times crime and security correspondent Conor Lally explains.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Andrew McNair. 

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Since then, the controversial health secretary has caused large upheaval within America’s public health system, making appointments and changing vaccine policies which impact the lives of millions of Americans.

RFK Jnr has also been widely criticised for firing Susan Monarez, the director of the Centre for Disease Control, the federal agency in charge of protecting the health of Americans.

Kennedy claims his new appointments to oversee disease control are committed to “evidence-based medicine” and “gold standard science”.

But, scientists and doctors across the US say he is putting Americans’ health in danger and undermining public trust in highly safe and effective vaccines.

What has been the impact, so far, of a prominent vaccine-sceptic, with no medical background, leading America’s health agenda? How far will Trump back him?

And what does Kennedy’s anti-vaccine approach mean for the future of scientific research in the United States?

Today, on In The News, RFK Jnr has vowed to upend American healthcare. But how far will he go?

UCD Clinton Institute professor of American Studies Scott Lucas discusses Robert F Kennedy Jr’s tightening grip on America’s public health system.

Presented by Sorcha Pollak. Produced by John Casey and Andrew McNair. 

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Produced by Andrew McNair. 

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After prime suspect Ian Bailey’s death last year, Sophie's uncle Jean-Pierre Gazeau said their family would never get the truth. 

But now a Garda cold case team has used new technology, called M-Vac, to harvest DNA from items recovered at the West Cork crime scene.

We talk to Jared Bradley, the man behind M-Vac, about how it has helped US investigators to crack decades-old cases. 

But first, Southern correspondent Barry Roche shares what we know about progress in the du Plantier case.

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RTÉ has joined more than 30 broadcasters worldwide in making a version of the Dutch format which sees players strategising, “killing”, banishing and lying – all to win a cash prize.

It is hosted brilliantly with more than hint of theatricality by Cork actor Siobhán McSweeney, who changes her elaborate costumes more often than the contestants change their minds about each other.

Just three episodes in and favourite players are emerging but it is impossible to accurately predict the winner.

The rules are complicated but the appeal is easy to understand.

For Irish Times features writer Patrick Freyne “it’s a game of skill and strategy and not just the random weaponisation of groupthink and paranoid pattern recognition that you get in any office, school or newsroom”.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by John Casey.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Searches for the child’s remains in an area of ground in north Dublin are expected to continue for several more days.

The boy spent about a year in state care before returning to his family in 2020, with Tusla confirming it had no contact with the child between 2020 and last week.

The case comes one year after it emerged another boy, Kyran Durnin, had not been seen for several years and is now feared dead.

Conor Lally and Kitty Holland report on the search for the Dublin boy and the questions that must be answered about how a child once in the care of the State could vanish for years.

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British prime minister Keir Starmer resumed business in parliament by announcing a small reshuffle of his Downing Street team. However, the Labour leader is still facing an array of domestic and foreign policy conundrums, most notably Farage’s rapidly rising popularity.

His right-wing Reform UK party has led Labour in about 90 successive opinion polls, while recent polls show 71 per cent of British voters believe the prime minister is handling the asylum hotel issue badly. Nearly four in ten British voters now cite immigration and asylum as the most important issue facing the country.

With Starmer facing calls from Labour Party heavyweights to take a more radical approach to the small boats crisis, and calls led by Farage for Britain to leave the European Convention on Human Rights, the Labour Party is undoubtedly facing a rocky autumn season.

What are the main challenges facing Starmer’s Government in the coming weeks and how does he propose to overcome them?

And how much have Nigel Farage and his Reform UK party benefited from Labour’s plummeting support?

Today, on In The News, can Keir Starmer claw back control as Nigel Farage soars ahead?

Irish Times London correspondent Mark Paul discusses the political perils facing Keir Starmer as the summer recess ends.

Presented by Sorcha Pollak. Produced by Andrew McNair. 

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In 2023 a judicial review found that the babies may have died of a genetic condition and having served nearly two decades in prison she was freed.

Her case is now regarded as one of Australia’s greatest miscarriages of justice.

In the second episode on the Katheleen Follbig case, McDermot explains how a scientific breakthrough eventually exonerated the mother of four.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Suzanne Brennan. 

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The first three were treated as cases of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) but when Laura died, the authorities looked to Meadow’s Law and arrested the grieving mother.

That controversial theory held that “one sudden infant death is a tragedy, two is suspicious and three is murder until proved otherwise”.

She always maintained her innocence.

In 2023 a judicial review found that the babies may have died of a genetic condition and having served nearly two decades in prison she was freed.

Her case is now regarded as one of Australia’s greatest miscarriages of justice.

In August, the now 58-year-old woman, who was once branded “Australia’s worst mother”, was awarded just AUS$2million for 20 years of wrongful imprisonment.

The sum was far less than anyone predicted says award-winning investigative journalist Quentin McDermott. He wrote the book on Meadow’s Law and made the TV documentary that helped raise questions about the safety of her conviction, leading to the review that freed her.

In the first of two episode on the case, McDermot explains how the now discredited legal concept led police to Kathleen Folbigg's door.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Suzanne Brennan.

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All was fine until their landlord advised them that unless they accepted a third person to share their bedroom their rent would have to double.

Janiedson da Silva dos Santos was sharing a house with eight others – students rented a bed, not a room – until Leevin Ireland abruptly issued him with a month’s notice. While he was away for a few days, he returned to his rental to find it in disarray and his property gone from his room.

Irish Times housing reporter Niamh Towey and Dublin-based Brazilian freelance journalist Alekson Lacerda tell In the News how landlords are exploiting the dire housing situation and how a lack of English and an understanding of tenants’ rights mean foreign students are easily exploited.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by John Casey.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Catherine Connolly, who launched her candidacy early with the support of Labour, the Soc Dems and others will be on the ballot paper.

She will be joined by other presidential hopefuls – that much is certain – but who?

Today in The Irish Times Pat Leahy reports that Fianna Fáil may have found its candidate.

On today's podcast political correspondent Ellen Coyne looks at GAA legend Jim Gavin's potential candidacy, why Fine Gael picked Heather Humphreys over Sean Kelly, and whether the independents pushing for a place on the ballot have a real shot.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Declan Conlon

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The use of so-called 'dodgy box' technology to illegally stream television is widespread. Last week Mary Hannigan reported on the impact dodgy boxes are having on Irish sports broadcasters like Clubber, LOITV and GAA+.

“I said it before, it’s no different to going in to your local shop, picking up a loaf of bread or a bottle of milk and just walking out the door without paying,” said Jimmy Doyle, the founder of Clubber, the subscription platform that streams GAA club games. “It’s theft, at the end of the day.”

Individuals have been prosecuted for selling dodgy box services. But so far there have been no consequences for those using them.

Back in June on In the News Conor Pope reported on whether dodgy box users will ever face the law.

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Open AI, the American artificial intelligence company cofounded by Sam Altman and Elon Musk in 2015 which runs ChatGPT, claims its non-profit “mission” is to ensure these systems “benefit all of humanity”.

And while the launch of ChatGPT has undoubtedly lightened the workload of many, engineer, journalist and AI expert Karen Hao says the AI race for world domination carries a huge human and environmental cost.

In 2019, Hao spent three days embedded in the offices of OpenAI and discovered this company, which claims to be transparent and operating “for the good of humanity”, was in fact highly secretive.

In her bestselling book ‘Empire of AI: Inside the reckless race for total domination’, Hao warns that the world has entered a new and ominous age of empire, where a small handful of companies are writing the future of humanity.

Today, on the In The News podcast, how the race for total AI domination is repeating the worst of human history.

Karen Hao discusses the severe cost of the seemingly unstoppable growth of OpenAI.

Presented by Sorcha Pollak. Produced by Aideen Finnegan. 

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The existence of an IRB will come as a surprise to historians who consider that the secret-oath-bound society of the same name was disbanded more than 100 years ago.

But in recent years, a new cohort has taken over the IRB name, turning it into a growing organisation steeped in the pseudo-legal language of the sovereign citizen movement, which believes citizens are not subject to State laws.

This has caused officials in Dublin and nationally to become increasingly nervous about the group’s intentions.

The leaders of the modern IRB are in large part veterans of the Covid-19 anti-mask and anti-lockdown campaigns, along with property owners who turned to conspiracy theories after losing vast sums during the crash. Its leaders include a prominent Clare businessman, a teacher, a healthcare worker and a life coach.

This version of the IRB has a shadow government, a nascent court system and a network of local government bodies. It has also adopted a new time zone, Irish Rising Time, which is 25 minutes slower and based on the time zone used in Dublin until the 1916 rising. It even claims control over Óglaigh na hÉireann.

So is this fringe group like those harmless re-enactors who cosplay historical events or does it have the potential to go the way of some sovereign citizen groups in the US and Germany who have escalated their actions to include violence?

Irish Times Crime and Security Correspondent Conor Gallagher explains.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Suzanne Brennan.

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The arrests were on foot of a ban in July under UK terrorism legislation which put the group in the same proscribed category as Islamic State, al-Qaeda, the IRA, the UVF and a long list of banned terror groups.

In an essay in the Irish Times last weekend, novelist Sally Rooney made her position clear.

In the piece which she says she could not legally publish in a British publication, she writes that she supports Palestine Action – including financially – and “If this makes me a ‘supporter of terror’ under UK law, so be it“.

The images that emerged of the arrests at the rally included those of elderly men and women with home-made “Stop the Genocide” signs and of people wearing Palestine Action T-shirts and carrying banners.

Since then, civil liberties groups have been vocal in what they say is the dangerous route the British government is following, appearing to conflate peaceful protest with terrorism.

So what is Palestine Action? Irish Times London correspondent Mark Paul explains.

And he describes the scenes inside and outside the court in London on Wednesday when Belfast rapper Liam Óg Ó hAnnaidh was in court facing charges of supporting a proscribed organisation by allegedly displaying a flag in support of Hizbullah at a Kneecap gig in London gig last year.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Declan Conlon.

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Tattle Life is a gossip site that many will have never heard of until a landmark defamation trial in Belfast in June 2025.

Donna and Neil Sands bought a defamation case against the site – and won. They were each awarded £150,000 (€176,000) in damages, with the court saying their costs should also be covered.

The married couple who live in Northern Ireland said that cruel, untrue and hateful anonymous postings over several years on the site left them fearing for their safety, their businesses and their relationships and impacted on their mental health.

Award-winning journalist Aoife Moore knows exactly how the Sands feel. She too has been the victim of an onslaught of online abuse on Tattle Life, with entirely untrue gossip spread about her personal and professional life.

She tells In the News how that impacted on her and what the defamation case means for her. And while this is the first successful defamation case against the gossip site, she says it will not be the last.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Suzanne Brennan.

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Who are these people, why are they coming home and what do they think of the Ireland they've returned to?

Today, on the In the News podcast, we speak to three Irish people who recently returned to Ireland after years of building a life overseas. Are Irish infrastructure and healthcare as bad as we believe when compared with other systems abroad? What is it that pulls people back?

And are they back for the long haul, or is reintegration back into Irish society too difficult after a long stint overseas?

Presented by Sorcha Pollak. Produced by Suzanne Brennan. 

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It pumps millions of euro into the local economy and pulls in well over half a million viewers; no mean feat in an age of dwindling linear TV viewership.

Almost 30 years of being lampooned as a ‘Lovely Girls’ competition thanks to that Father Ted episode has seen its popularity undimmed.

Albeit only relatively recently, it has evolved to permit married and transgender women enter the contest.

However 29 is still the cut-off age, meaning you are officially too old for Rose of Tralee at the age of 30.

The title is bestowed upon a young woman whom the judges think would be a good ‘cultural ambassador’ for Ireland for the following year.

While the spirit of diversity has been embraced, with women of colour among those to don the sash, is the competition still overly focused on a narrow version of femininity?

Last year, the documentary ‘Housewife of the Year’ highlighted the eponymous competition which ran from 1969 to 1995.

In what seems utterly baffling now, married women were judged on their ability to “budget effectively and prepare a simple meal.”

Eventually the competition was scrapped quietly; collapsing under the weight of public opinion which was rebelling against societal norms of the quiet homemaker.

But the Rose of Tralee doesn’t appear to be in any such jeopardy, and is arguably as popular as ever.

Reporter Niamh Browne joins the podcast from Tralee to ponder the question: Is the Rose of Tralee uncancellable?

Presented by Aideen Finnegan. Produced by Declan Conlon and Andrew McNair.

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In today’s episode, Irish Times health correspondent Shauna Bowers shares Dr Davern's traumatic experience in Qatar and explains why he is now speaking out about the working conditions and ethical dilemmas he faced during his time there.

Presented by Sorcha Pollak. Produced by Suzanne Brennan and Andrew McNair. 

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The use of opioids has increased by 25 per cent in Ireland, while the prescription of paracetamol rose 50 per cent between 2014-2022, according to a study published last week in the British Journal of Clinical Pharmacology.

The prescription of even stronger medication, like codeine and opioids including tapentadol and oxycodone, is rising even higher.

This sharp increase in pain medication prescriptions by doctors in Ireland contrasts starkly with the approach in England, where the NHS is cracking down on the overuse of these potentially-addictive medicines.

Why are so many doctors prescribing this heavy-dose medication?

And is this growing reliance on opioids at risk of become an addiction crisis for patients seeking pain relief?

Today, on In The News, is Ireland heading towards an opioid addiction crisis?

Royal College of Surgeons Ireland (RCSI) associate professor Frank Moriarty, who co-authored the study into how pain is treated in Ireland, discusses the significant rise in opioid prescriptions.

Presented by Sorcha Pollak. Produced by Andrew McNair.

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The 33-year-old entrepreneur from Co Carlow had been living in the United States for nearly a decade where she had set a series of pop-up clothes boutiques and lived in Manhattan’s upper east side.

US police are now trying to piece together the events that led up to the death of this young Irish woman after the result of a preliminary examination were deemed inconclusive. A final postmortem report will reportedly take at least three months to complete.

Irish Times reporter Niamh Browne discusses the Irish fashion entrepreneur’s life and untimely death.

Presented by Sorcha Pollak.

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The Israeli leader claims his security cabinet’s decision to capture Gaza City, which could mean months, possibly years, of combat ahead, is “the best way to end the war, and the best way to end it speedily”.

The plan has resulted in protests across Israel with calls for a total end to the war and the release of hostages. Israeli military leaders have also opposed the plan.

Meanwhile, starvation continues to spread across Gaza, with Israel permitting just a fraction of the aid needed to address the catastrophic levels of hunger into the strip.

And this week, five journalists, including a prominent Al Jazeera reporter, were killed in a targeted Israeli air strike. Their deaths bring to 192 the total number of journalists who have died since the war in Gaza nearly two years ago, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists.

Why, in the face of all this, is Mr Netanyahu pushing ahead to reoccupy Gaza City, despite overwhelming opposition to his plan?

Today, on In The News, Netanyahu says the plan to control Gaza city will end the war. But, is that what he really wants?

Irish Times contributor Mark Weiss discusses the fallout from the Israeli Government’s decision to take control of Gaza city.

Presented by Sorcha Pollak. Produced by Aideen Finnegan and Andrew Mc Nair. 

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