The Last Word with Matt Cooper

Marion McKeone, US Correspondent with the Business Post and nationally syndicated columnist Cal Thomas joined Matt for Tuesday’s The Last Word’s Slot.Up for discussion was Donald Trump threatening to pull out of next month’s debate with Kamala Harris and Robert F Kennedy junior being added to Trump’s transition team, should he win November’s election.Hit the ‘Play’ button on this page to hear the chat.

Journalist and author Aoife Barry joins The Last Word to discuss the announcement that Liam and Noel Gallagher have put aside their differences for a long-awaited reunion tour and will play two nights in Croke Park next year. Then in The Last Word on Music, John Caddell and Dee Reddy react to the news and look ahead to Coldplay's four nights in Croke Park.Catch the full chat by pressing the 'Play' button on this page!

Friends of the Earth has said that Ireland has ‘just scraped a B- overall grade’ in its attempts to address climate change issues.Meanwhile, Wind Energy Ireland has urged the government to provide funding to invest in infrastructure to develop offshore wind energy.Dr. Cara Augustenborg, Assistant Professor, Environmental Policy Programme at UCD and Noel Cunniffe, Chief Executive at Wind Energy Ireland, joined Matt to discuss.Hit the ‘Play’ button on this page to hear the chat.

Ian Guider, columnist with the Business Post, joined Matt for Monday's business news.They discussed how Aer Lingus is reducing its Dublin-Heathrow service later this year due to passenger numbers not improving since Covid-19 travel restrictions were lifted.Hit the ‘Play’ button on this page to hear the conversation.

In a strongly worded interview, Minister for Health Stephen Donnelly, outlined the inappropriate material that teenagers are exposed to online and the litany of harms that can be caused to them.He vowed to take social media companies to task over their responsibilities and he vowed to ban social media for under 16 year old.To catch the full conversation, press the play button on this page.If you are concerned about harms caused to your child as a result of content viewed online, you can contact:SamaritansSamaritans services are available 24 hours a day, for confidential, non-judgmental support.Freephone 116 123Visit www.samaritans.ie for more informationPietaPieta provide a range of suicide and self-harm prevention services.Freephone 1800 247 247 anytime day or nightText HELP to 51444 (standard message rates apply)Visit www.pieta.ie for more informationChildlineA free 24/7 support service for children and young people up to and including those age 18 years of age.Freephone 1800 66 66 66Live chat at www.childline.ie

Sarah Slattery from the travelexpert.ie joins The Last Word to discuss some of the best holidays out there for people who want to focus on their health and wellness. Catch the full chat by pressing the 'Play' button on this page!

23% of Leaving Cert candidates did not register for Irish exams this year. It’s the highest figure recorded so far and there has been an increase each year since 2018 where 15% of students received exemptions.Julian de Spáinn, Ard-Rúnaí - Conradh na Gaeilge and Donald Ewing, Head of Education and Policy, Dyslexia Ireland joined Matt to discuss.Hit the ‘Play’ button on this page to hear the chat.

World Athletics has announced that Bahrain Athletics Association was charged with a number of anti-doping violations before the Paris Olympics, raising the question of why Bahrain's athletics team was allowed to compete?Ian O'Ríordan, athletics correspondent with the Irish Times, joins The Last Word to discuss the investigation and what it could mean for Irish athlete Rhasidat Adeleke.Catch the full chat by pressing the 'Play' button on this page!

Electric Picnic sells out, Enoch Burke returns to school and young viewers flock to The Rose of Tralee.Dave Hanratty, host of the No Encore Podcast, and Laura Byrne, column editor and podcast producer with The Journal, join The Last Word to discuss the week's trending news stories.Catch the full chat by pressing the 'Play' button on this page!

Author Paul Howard has released the final installment of the Ross O’Carroll-Kelly series, ‘Don’t Look Back in Ongar’.He spoke to Matt about why he’s decided to end the series after 24 novels.Hit the ‘Play’ button on this page to hear the conversation