Highlights from The Hard Shoulder

The Dáil ends this week – so who are the biggest winners and losers of this Dáil term?Sarah McGuinness, Political Correspondent for the Irish Daily Mail and Ireland Editor for the Irish Independent, Fionnan Sheahan, join Kieran to discuss.

Whether it's putting spare change away, finding the best deal or examining what subscriptions you really need, technology can be a great tool to help you save money.For this week's Tech Takeover, Jess Kelly, Newstalk's Technology Correspondent joins Kieran to give all of her money saving tech tips!

Sinn Féin leader Mary Lou McDonald, while congratulating Katie Taylor on her recent victory over Amanda Serrano, said that she would like to see a fight take place in Croke Park.Katie Taylor has been non-committal on her future so far, but if Croke Park became an option for a fight, would that mean we'll see another one?Matchroom's Eddie Hearn joins Kieran to discuss.

Recent abortion figures were covered on the show yesterday, which showed that the number of women who had abortions in Ireland last year rose to 10,852, which is the highest they've been since abortion was legalised in 2019.This has brought up questions surrounding contraception. In Ireland, women aged 17-34 can avail of the Free Contraception Scheme, which offers a range of contraceptive services such as prescriptions, GP consultations, and fitting/removal of long-acting reversible contraception (LARCs).So, if we have these services, why are abortions on the rise?To discuss this further, Kieran is joined by Saoirse Hanley, Personal Finance Journalist, Irish Independent and Life Magazine Columnist, Sunday Independent, Dr Máire Finn, GP with Centric Health and Eleanor Hayward, Health editor at The Times.

EU cash for farmers or the Common Agricultural Policy could reduce or change in the next EU budgetary cycle in 2028. But, what would this mean for Irish farmers who receive over €2 billion in payments. Will farmers be able to keep the lights on if the money dries up?Henry McKean has been out to a mart speaking to farmers, and joins Kieran to discuss.

A Co. Down cricket club has cancelled its plans to host a cross-community summer sports club after online criticism of its decision to include children who play GAA.Alliance MLA Kellie Armstrong joins Kieran to discuss why a children's sporting event became so contentious.

The HSE is not being given funding to tackle vaping or nicotine pouch addiction under current quit smoking programmes, despite a rise in people trying to quit e-cigarettes or nicotine pouches who had never smoked tobacco.Do we need to revisit this to tackle the issue?Joining Kieran to discuss is Professor Luke Clancy, Director General of the TobaccoFree Research Institute Ireland and Tom Gleeson, Trustee of the New Nicotine Alliance Ireland.

Temple Bar has been named as the third worst tourist trap in the world – only behind Fisherman's Wharf in the US, and Las Ramblas in Barcelona in Spain.And, while many will complain at how expensive the likes of Temple Bar is, are tourist traps just part of a thriving city?Joining Kieran to discuss is Elaine Cobbe, CBS Correspondent in Paris and Ana Rosa Butler, Writer based in Spain.

Every week for The Ultimate Guide on The Hard Shoulder, Fionn Davenport takes a closer look at some of the fantastic destinations to visit around the world.This week, Fionn joined Kieran to give his travel tips and recommendations if you ever plan on taking a cruise!

Blood Bikes, a nonprofit that delivers medical essentials to healthcare facilities across Ireland, is advocating for its volunteers' right to use bus lanes.The Department of Transport does not support this request, and claimed in a statement that having more vehicles in bus lanes will reduce the lanes' efficiency.Ambulances are able to use bus lanes and are exempt from road tolls. However, Sinn Féin TD Aengus Ó Snodaigh tabled an amendment to the Road Traffic and Roads Bill to extend this exemption to Blood Bike services.Regional Coordinator and Founder of Blood Bikes Leinster, Fergus Lennon, joins Kieran to discuss.Image: bloodbikes.ie

Scientists have detected the biggest ever merger of two black holes. Astronomers have recorded gravitational waves that have caused ripples within space and time.The black holes, each more than 100 times the mass of the Sun, began circling each other long ago and finally slammed together to form an even more massive black hole about 10 billion light years from Earth.The merger was detected by the gravitational wave detector network LIGO-Virgo-KAGRA (LVK) on November 23rd 2023, during the fourth observing run of these three sensitive laser interferometers located in the US, Italy, and Japan.To discuss more, Kieran is joined by Danielle Willcocks, a Telescope Operator from Blackrock Castle Observatory in Cork.

One of the memos brought to Cabinet today was to approve the making of the ‘Team Ireland' trade mission, an annual event to be held every October in a key market.It's as multiple senior Ministers are set to travel this October to a trade mission.Peter Burke is the Minister for Enterprise, Tourism and Employment, and Fine Gael TD for Longford-Westmeath, and joins Kieran to discuss.

After Tánaiste Simon Harris' calls for asylum seekers with jobs to pay towards their accommodation, Kieran was joined by Cathal Malone of Thomas Coughlan & Co Solicitors to learn what asylum seekers actually get when they arrive in the country.Today, Cathal returns to discuss what rights someone has after they have been granted asylum.

Off the Ball's Eoin Sheahan joins Kieran to place his favourite book on The Hard Shoulder Bookshelf!

The 77th Emmy Awards will take place on the 14th of September this year, but who is up for the awards?The nominations are hot off the press, and Brian Lloyd, Entertainment Journalist and Film Critic joins Kieran to break them down.Image: HBO

Ireland has the strictest nightclub curfews in all of Europe, with bars and nightclubs closing by 2:30 a.m. Though it's common for club-goers to party until sunrise in other major European cities, licensing laws prevent Irish nightclubs from staying open as late. Should that change?Joining Kieran to discuss is Dublin's first Nighttime Economy Advisor, aka the “Night Mayor” Ray O'Donoghue and Chair of Alcohol Health Alliance Ireland and former President of the Royal College of Physicians Ireland, Frank Murray.

New figures released show that the number of abortions in the state rose to 10,852 in 2024, which is the highest they've had since abortion was first legalised in 2019.With 10,711 of these being early terminations and 108 terminations were due to a diagnosed fatal foetal abnormality, where there was a condition likely to lead to death of the foetus.A further 24 pregnancies were terminated due to risk to the life or health of the mother, while nine terminations involved an emergency intervention.Even with abortions being legal in Ireland, it's reported that 240 people still chose to travel to the UK to access abortion care.To discuss, Kieran is joined by Dr Madeleine Ní Dhálaigh, Vice Chair of the GP Committee of the IMO and GP in Castlerea, Roscommon.

Nominations are closed for the Fine Gael nomination for President, and unsurprisingly, Mairead McGuinness is on the ticket to run.Who else is looking to run?Newstalk's Political Correspondent, Sean Defoe, joins Kieran with the latest.

A surge in antisocial behaviour such as drinking, assaults, and drug use on public transport has left some Irish Rail staff afraid to work. How can we solve the issue?Joining Kieran to discuss is Suzanne Armstrong, Dublin Bus driver, Barry Kenny, Corporate Communications Manager with Irish Rail and Andrew Quigley, SIPTU Organiser.

From Lego to the Rubik's Cube, Hamleys have released a list of the 100 top toys of all time. To mark its 265th birthday, the toy store giant has released a ‘hero' list. To discuss further, Kieran is joined by Henry McKean.

It has been brought to our attention that bin companies are taking photos of our recycling and sending us letters in the post when we are doing it wrong. To discuss further we are joined by Henry McKean.

Today is Bastille Day, the French National Day that celebrates the Storming of Bastille during the French Revolution in 1789. The French national anthem, known as La Marseillaise, is grim, and a little controversial…Journalist and Historian Ronan McGreevy joins Kieran to tell more about its history.

Having kids already takes up a lot of time, and when you add pets into the mix, things get even more hectic. But, is it worth it for the physical and emotional benefits? Children who grow up in homes with pets are less likely to develop allergies to allergens like grass, mould, pollen, dogs, and cats. Pets can lower a person's blood pressure and heart rate, and introduce added responsibility into a household.Niamh O'Reilly is a dog lover as well as a mother, a Freelance Journalist and Broadcaster. She joins Kieran to discuss!

Tánaiste Simon Harris has been calling for asylum seekers with jobs to pay towards their accommodation – adding that he expects the Government to introduce a means test for people living in international protection.Cathal Malone of Thomas Coughlan & Co Solicitors joins Kieran to discuss this, and what asylum seekers are entitled to when they arrive in the country.

Irish cyclist Ben Healy has taken the yellow leader's jersey after stage 10 of the Tour de France, being the first Irishman to do so since 1987!Kieran is joined on the line by Imogen Ní Choitir, Road safety advocate and professional cyclist to discuss the incredible achievement.

Ireland's electric vehicle charging network is currently facing a number of challenges, including geographical disparity, high costs and limited chargers.With people all around the country saying they just cannot afford to keep up with their cars even with government initiatives…But, hope is not lost! Germany may have solved the urban EV charging problem. Düsseldorf Stadtwerke, the local municipal authority, has installed one of six so-called ‘kerb-chargers'.To discuss, Kieran is joined by Derek Scally, the Berlin Correspondent for the Irish Times.Image: Energy Saving Trust

Taoiseach Micheál Martin wishes to re-establish town councils in Ireland by 2029, citing a “...sense of representation at all levels.”So, should town councils be re-established?Independent Councilor in New Ross, Michael Sheehan and Tom Phillips, Managing Director of Tom Phillips and Associates and Adjunct Associate Professor of Town Planning at UCD join Kieran to discuss.

Some meat prices have risen by as much as 28% since last year, with butchers experiencing greater challenges in running their shops.Why is that, and is it just down to prices?Jack Molloy is owner of Jack Molloy and Sons Butcher in Waterford City and President of the Association of Craft Butcher of Ireland. He joins Kieran to discuss.

This past weekend brought us the hottest day of the year, with it reaching up to 31.1° Celsius in some parts of the country. And of course, with high weather there comes a high level of beach-goers.There were clips online shared of Portmarnock beach in North Dublin, where cars were blocking both entrances and exits, they were parked up on the grass, some leaving with massive scratches and damage done to the car, and even people abandoning their vehicles.Yesterday, Gardaí confirmed that the car parks at Warren Beach near Rosscarbery and Inchydoney Beach near Clonakilty in West Cork were overcrowded, confirming that there was no longer any safe access to either of the beaches by the afternoon.Joining Kieran to discuss this is Cllr Marie O'Sullivan and Fine Gael TD Brian Brennan.

This week, Kieran Cuddihy was joined (on the roof of Newstalk towers) by the presenter of Weekend Breakfast on Today FM, Alison Curtis Off the Ball's Ger Gilroy to look back on the week that was, but with a few twists…

Off The Ball's Eoin Sheahan joined Kieran Cuddihy on The Hard Shoulder to review the week in sport and look ahead to the weekend action…

Aisling Larkin, Mindful Eating Coach and TV Chef joins Kieran on the roof of Newstalk towers to discuss how you can make some summer-themed recipes to suit the glorious weather!

40 years ago, the world gathered to watch the biggest music acts in the world put on a benefit concert, one in London, and the other in Philadelphia.Media Consultant Tony O'Brien was lucky enough to attend, and joins Kieran to look back on the iconic day…

You will be well familiar with Kieran's guest, Fionn Davenport, Travel Journalist and Lonely Planet author.He joins to regale his stories of travelling the globe, discussing the good, the bad and the ugly!

What defines a summer anthem? Is it a pulsing beat, a beachy hook, or playful experimentation?Freelance Arts Journalist Pat Carty joins Kieran to give his take.

The Hard Shoulder is broadcasting today from the roof of Newstalk towers, soaking up the sun and chatting about all things summer!Joining Kieran to chat and bask in the sun is Holly Carpenter, Model and Andrea Gilligan, Presenter of Lunchtime Live on Newstalk.

John Fardy, Presenter of 'Screentime' and Sarina Bellissimo, Broadcaster and Presenter of the Bellissimo Files Podcast joined Kieran Cuddihy on The Hard Shoulder to review the latest TV and movie releases…

Yellow warnings for high temperatures in place as some areas of the country will likely hit 27°C tomorrow…Are you a fan of weather warnings being given for high temperatures?Joining Kieran to discuss is Carlow Weather's Alan O'Reilly, Independent Ireland TD for Cork North Central Ken O'Flynn and Sheena Mitchell, Pharmacist, owner of the ‘TotalHealth' pharmacy in Milltown and podcaster on the ‘A Wondercare Podcast'.

Author John Banville joins Kieran for this week's Thursday Interview!

Belfast City Council has asked police to remove a bonfire that is due to be set alight tomorrow night.There are concerns over the bonfires' close proximity to an electrical substation and there's also a pile of asbestos nearby.Newstalk Reporter Josh Crosbie is there, and joins Kieran to discuss.

For many people, the hot weather will mean a sleepless night of tossing and turning.We have some useful tips to keep yourself cool at night!Mary Ryan, Endocrinologist and Senior Professor at Bons Secours Limerick joins Kieran to discuss.

A Nigerian-Irish woman “broke down in tears” after an alleged racist incident while using Bus Éireann.20-year-old Sarah Lennon claims that she was trying to transfer her bus ticket when the bus driver became “unnecessarily hostile” and “aggressive.” Bus Éireann is investigating the incident, which occurred in the midlands in May.Sarah joins Kieran to discuss.