The Last Word with Matt Cooper

In a recent interview with the Sunday Times, Garda Assistant Commissioner Paul Cleary said he wants to make increasing the number of guards on the streets of Dublin a priority.Gary Gannon, Social Democrats TD for Dublin North Central & spokesperson for Justice and Catherine Ardagh, Fianna Fail TD for Dublin South Central, spoke to Matt about what they think needs to be done to make the city's streets safer.Hit the ‘Play’ button on this page to hear the discussion.

Pope Francis' health scare leaves many wondering if he will resign, living in a cabin in the garden, and the future of the James Bond franchise.Fionnuala Jones and Dave Hanratty join The Last Word to discuss the week's trending stories.Catch the full chat by pressing the 'Play' button on this page!

Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage James Browne joins The Last Word to discuss measures being considered by government to boost homebuilding and address the housing crisis.Catch the full chat by pressing the 'Play' button on this page!

Elon Musk took to the stage in Washington this week and showed off a chainsaw given to him by Argentina’s president Javier Milei. Musk went on to say that it was his “chainsaw for bureaucracy”, whilst also wearing a “Make America Great Again” hat.Larry Donnelly, Law Lecturer at University of Galway & Columnist with TheJournal.ie joined Matt on Friday’s The Last Word.Hit the ‘Play’ button on this page to hear the conversation.

Andy O'Donoghue joins The Last Word to discuss how artificial intelligence is evolving and how soon we could see a version of AI that adapts and learns like humans.Catch the full chat by pressing the 'Play' button on this page!

Ian Guider, columnist with The Business Post, joins Matt to discuss all the big business headlines from Wednesday.IDA Ireland plans to deliver 75,000 new jobs in their five year plan, amid economic and political uncertaintyListen here for all the latest business news

Ahead of the release of his new show Small Town, Big Story on Sky Atlantic, actor Chris O’Dowd was the latest guest to be inducted into The Last Word’s Culture Club.Hit the ‘Play’ button on this page to hear his choices.

Government is expected to announce changes to the €800 tax-free payment given to those hosting Ukrainian refugees in the coming weeks.Of the 80,000 Ukrainians still in Ireland, more than 36,000 are living in private accommodation under the Accommodation Recognition Payment scheme which is due to expire on March 31st.Emma Lane Spollen, national coordinator with the Ukraine Civil Society Forum, and Matt Carthy. Sinn Féin TD and spokesperson on justice, home affairs and migration, join The Last Word to discuss to what extent Ireland should continue to support Ukrainian refugees in Ireland.Catch the full conversation by pressing the 'Play' button on this page!

The government is said to be considering relaxing planning rules on modular homes in back gardens in the latest effort to ease Ireland’s housing crisis.Minister of State at the Department of Housing, John Cummins and Martin Markey, Chief Executive of the Hardware Association of Ireland spoke to Matt on Wednesday’s The Last Word.Hit the ‘Play’ button on this page to hear the conversation.

The United States and Russia have agreed to have closer cooperation and continue planning an end to the war in Ukraine following a meeting of officials in Saudi Arabia.Cal Thomas, nationally syndicated US columnist, and journalist Marion McKeone join The Last Word to discuss this and more of the week’s news from the United States.Catch the full conversation by pressing the ‘Play’ button on this page!