The Last Word with Matt Cooper

Ahead of his return to the White House, President-elect Donald Trump has made a number of controversial appointments and nominations to his administration.Cal Thomas, nationally syndicated US columnist, and Marion McKeone, US Correspondent with the Business Post, join The Last Word to discuss the individuals Trump has chosen for critical Cabinet posts and top White House jobs. Catch the full chat by pressing the 'Play' button on this page.

With the general election campaign in full swing, political parties are making a range of spending promises as they attempt to sway voters. But all that could be in jeopardy following Donald Trump's US presidential win.John Deasy, former TD and former Irish government envoy to US Congress, and Dan O’Brien, chief economist at the Institute of International and European Affairs, join The Last Word to discuss what a Trump presidency will mean for Ireland's economy and diplomacy.Catch the full discussion by pressing the 'play' button on this page.

Last night, ten political party leaders took part in the first major televised debate of the 2024 general election campaign.It lasted just over two hours, but how well did each leader perform and is it likely to sway any voting preferences?Daniel McConnell, Editor of the Business Post, joined The Last Word to analyse the standout moments.Hit the ‘Play’ button on this page to hear the chat.

Episode 6: In the run up to the big day, join Today FM's Ben Finnegan as he covers what's being said across the political spectrum to help give you the best chance of being informed at the ballot box.On day 11 of the campaign, Fine Gael doubles down on its support forJohn McGahon, The Green Party announces it would be happy to go into government with Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil, People Before Profit put forward a new idea for renters and The Social Democrats commit to their pledges for rights for persons with disabilities. Eamonn Torsney also joins Ben to discuss the Fine Gael manifesto launch.

The Sunday Independent has reported that Aer Lingus has asked its staff to take unpaid leave in the new year as it plans to restructure its ground operations department at Dublin Airport in 2025.Meanwhile, medical device company Abbott is due to open a new manufacturing facility in Kilkenny, creating 800 jobs.Ian Guider, columnist with the Business Post, joined Matt for Monday’s business news.Hit the ‘Play’ button on this page to hear the chat.

As political parties enter the second week of election campaigning, Louise Burne, Political Correspondent with The Irish Mirror, discussed the issues of the day including why Fine Gael is under fire for backing John McGahon as a candidate in Louth after images and video of a pub brawl were published online over the weekend.To catch the full conversation, press the 'play' button on this page.

The Last Word kicked off its series of party leader interviews on Monday ahead of the general election on November 29th.First up was Aontú’s Peadar Tóibín, who spoke to Matt about immigration, public transport issues, the cost-of-living crisis and which parties he would be willing to go into government with.Hit the ‘Play’ button on this page to hear the conversation.

Ian Guider, columnist with the Business Post joined Matt for Friday’s business news.They discussed how a new health insurer, Level Health, has launched in Ireland. The move is expected to boost competition within the market.Hit the ‘Play’ button on this page to hear the conversation.

Aoife Barry, journalist and author of Social Capital, and Ian Power, CEO of Spunout.ie, join The Last Word to discuss the week's trending stories including Leaving Cert reforms, the rise of Bluesky after Trump's election and Robbie Keane's wife hits out at 'dangerous' comments. Catch the full chat by pressing 'play' button on this page!

Sean Ronayne, ornithologist and author of Nature Boy: A Journey of Birdsong and Belonging, spoke to Matt about his love of nature, and his project to record every bird species in Ireland, and the importance of conservation.To catch the full conversation, press the ‘play’ button on this page.

Episode 5: In the run up to the big day, join Today FM's Ben Finnegan as he covers what's being said across the political spectrum to help give you the best chance of being informed at the ballot box.On day 8 of the campaign, Fianna Fáil launches their plan to tackle crime leading to a fight back from Fine Gael, we delve into People Before Profit's transport policy focuses on their key free of charge proposal and Labour's proposals for the primary care sector. Sean Defoe also joins Ben for a round up of the first week of the campaign.

Episode 4: In the run up to the big day, join Today FM's Ben Finnegan as he covers what's being said across the political spectrum to help give you the best chance of being informed at the ballot box.On day 7 of the campaign Simon Harris reveals Fine Gael's election slogan, People Before Profit Solidarity launch their manifesto, Sinn Féin put forward their immigration plan and Andrew Lowth joins us to discuss the Finna Fáil healthcare plan.

Paul McAuliffe, Fianna Fáil spokesperson on social protection, local government and electoral reform, and Pa Daly, Sinn Fein justice spokesperson, join The Last Word to discuss what their parties would do to manage crime and increase safety on the streets if they are in the next government.Hear the full debate by pressing the 'Play' button on this page!

COP29 is being held in Azerbaijan until the 22nd of November, and the country’s president Ilham Aliyev has criticised "Western fake news" regarding the country's emissions, saying that oil and gas are a “gift from God”.Meanwhile, Argentina has pulled out of talks in Baku after the country’s president Javier Milei previously said that climate change is a “socialist lie”.Commentator John Gibbons joined Matt for this week’s environment slot.Hit the ‘Play’ button on this page to hear the chat.

This week, President-elect Donald Trump began announcing his nominations for top roles within his administration. Among the nominations are Republican congressman Matt Gaetz to serve as attorney general, Stephen Miller to become deputy chief of staff for policy and Kristi Noem for the role of Homeland Security Secretary.Marion McKeone, US Correspondent, Business Post and Larry Donnelly, Law Lecturer at University of Galway & Political Columnist with TheJournal.ie, explained what this may mean when Trump takes over as President.Hit the ‘Play’ button on this page to hear the chat.