The Last Word with Matt Cooper

More families are now buying own-brand products and shopping in discount stores in order to reduce the costs of the weekly grocery shop.According to figures from EY, more than half of Irish households said that price is a significant factor when deciding what to buy, and nearly half said that they use discount stores to reduce spending.Charlie Weston, Personal Finance Editor with the Irish Independent, joined Matt on The Last Word.Hit the ‘Play’ button on this page to hear the chat.

DJ and producer Mark McCabe is the latest inductee into the Culture Club.He joined Matt to talk about ‘Maniac 2000 (25th Anniversary Edition)’, which was released last Friday.Hit the ‘Play’ button to hear his choices.

RTÉ has asked the European Broadcasting Union for a discussion on Israel's inclusion in the Eurovision Song Contest that takes place later this month due to the ongoing war in Gaza.Johnny Fallon, strategy director at Carr Communications and Eurovision enthusiast, joins The Last Word to discuss the likelihood of Israel being excluded from the contest.Catch the full chat by pressing the 'Play' button on this page!

On Saturday, the Dublin and Kilkenny camogie teams took to the field wearing shorts ahead of their Leinster semi-final fixture, in protest against a rule which requires them to wear skorts during matches. Having been told by the referee that the game wouldn’t go ahead if they didn’t comply with the rules, they subsequently changed into skorts.The move followed research published by the GPA which found that 70% of 650 intercounty players said they experienced discomfort wearing skorts, while 83% said they should be given the option to choose.Sinead O’Carroll, Editor of TheJournal.ie, spoke to Matt about the issue.Hit the ‘Play’ button on this page to hear their conversation.

US President Donald Trump has threatened to slap 100% tariffs on movies coming into the US that are "produced in foreign lands" in a statement that has alarmed the industry.Brian Carey, Sunday Times' business editor, joins The Last Word to discuss how this could impact Ireland's significant film industry.Catch the full chat by pressing the 'Play' button on this page!

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney has met with United States President Donald Trump at the White House as he looks to reset the US-Canada relationship following months of turmoil between the neighbouring countries.Cal Thomas, nationally syndicated US columnist, and journalist Marion McKeone join The Last Word to discuss this significant meeting and more of the latest news from the US.Catch the full chat by pressing the 'Play' button on this page!

The Government's plan to set up a new office to speed up home delivery has snowballed into a major issue, all while it is still scrambling to find ways to address Ireland's housing crisis.Tabitha Monahan, political reporter with the Irish Independent, and Daniel McConnell, editor of the Business Post, join The Last Word to explain this latest controversy and discuss whether it has exposed cracks in coalition relationships.Catch the full chat by pressing the 'Play' button on this page!

The number of women emigrating from Ireland has jumped 56% since the pandemic, according to a report by the Department of Enterprise.The figures also show that young women are emigrating at a much higher level than young menSarah McGuinness, political correspondent with the Irish Daily Mail, and Labour Senator Laura Harmon join The Last Word to discuss why so many are making the decision to leave Ireland. Catch the full chat by pressing the 'Play' button on this page!

Sunday and Irish Independent sports columnist Eamonn Sweeney has released his latest book “The Last Ditch: How One GAA Championship Gave A Sportswriter Back His Life”.It details how, in 2000, Eamonn developed a crippling phobia of travelling, which led to extreme panic attacks and resulted him living a solitary life in West Cork.However, he was given the opportunity to write about the 2024 GAA championship and knew that if he were to take on the project, he would have to overcome his fears once and for all.Eamonn joined Matt in studio to talk about his experience and his road to recovery.Hit the ‘Play’ button on this page to hear the chat.

Andy O'Donoghue joins The Last Word to talk through all the best new tech for outdoor activities. Catch the full chat by pressing the 'Play' button on this page!