The Hard Shoulder

Minister for Defence Helen McEntee today unveiled a €1.7 billion defence spending plan that will run until 2030.The Minister described this plan as "absolutely essential". Its aim is to speed up the modernisation of the Defence Forces and improve defence capabilities across land, air, and sea, as well as online from cyber attacks.Joining Ciara Doherty to discuss this is Paul Murphy, People Before Profit TD for Dublin South-West, Catherine Callaghan, Fine Gael TD for Carlow-Kilkenny and member of the Oireachtas Committee on Defence and National Security and Conor Gallagher, Crime and Security Correspondent for The Irish Times.

TV Presenter and Fashion Designer, Brendan Courtney joins Ciara to discuss the Irish Heart Foundation’s ‘12 Dips in December’ challenge, and why you should take part!

The suspension of the LUAS Green Line has caused chaos for many.But, is this just part of having a public transport network, that things will occasionally go awry, or should we be concerned?Sadhbh O’Neill is Project Lead for Feminist Communities for Climate Justice - a joint project of the National Women’s Council and Community Work Ireland, and she joins Ciara Doherty to discuss.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has ordered diplomatic correspondence to stop using the Calibri font and return to the more traditional Times New Roman, reversing a shift by Joe Biden’s administration to the less formal typeface, which Mr Rubio called “...wasteful, confusing and unbefitting the dignity of US government documents”.Should we care about the fonts we use?Joining Ciara Doherty to discuss is Saoirse Hanley, Features Writer with the Irish Independent and Red FM’s Eimear Hallahan.

Under a Department of Children plan, more families could be eligible for higher childcare subsidies.Will this help the industry?Joining Ciara Doherty to discuss is Elaine Dunne, Chairperson of the Federation of Early Childcare Providers and Averil Sheehan, owner of Care-a-lot Childcare, Upton, West Cork.

The Hard Shoulder is looking back on 2025’s biggest moments in the news, and who were at the heart of it.The NFL came to Dublin this year, where the Pittsburgh Steelers and Minnesota Vikings faced off in a game that practically took over the city for weeks…Joining Jonathan Healy to look back is Kieran O'Donovan from the Irish NFL Show.

Life can be full of confusing things, but no need to worry! Every Wednesday, Simon Tierney will be showing you ‘How to do Stuff’ - bringing his best tips for those things you might not think about.This week, Simon joins Jonathan Healy to reduce your waste around Christmastime!

Parents across Ireland are joining together in a growing movement to encourage their children to go smartphone free. It’s part of a global initiative to allow children to grow without the tech devices.To discuss this, Jonathan Healy is joined by Emer Carty of Smartphone Free Childhood Ireland.

From the overflowing bins that you try to ignore, to wrapping presents at the 11th hour on Christmas Eve, why do we procrastinate?Joining Jonathan Healy to discuss is Life Coach and self-proclaimed procrastinator, Mark Fennell, as well as Broadcaster Meghann Scully.

For this week’s Tech Takeover, Jess Kelly, Newstalk’s Technology Correspondent joins Jonathan Healy to discuss new research on average screen time for adults, and the apps that are used the most.