Highlights From Newstalk Breakfast

We go to Creeselough this morning where people are coming to terms with the enormity of what happened in the Co Donegal village on Friday. Ten people, all from the local area, died after an explosion. Newstalk's Chief Reporter Barry Whyte now joined us from Creeselough.

Two years ago, we spoke to Shelly Xiong who was racially abused and pushed into the Royal canal in Dublin by a group of teenage boys. Yesterday, Shelley presented her victim impact statement to judge Paul Kelly, and in it she said that she had forgiven the boys for their actions. Shelly spoke to Ciara this morning on the show.

Talks between the EU and UK over the Northern Ireland protocol resumed for the first time since February with renewed hope of a deal on the issue. It came as Foreign Affairs Minister Simon Coveney met with the UK’s Foreign Secretary James Cleverly for talks last night. Minister Coveney joined Ciara and Shane on Newstalk Breakfast this morning.

A winter ban on evictions is now being considered by the government under plans to deal with the current cost of living crisis As homelessness figures in the state have hit record highs, the ban is said to be kept in place until the end of March Peter Dooley, Co-founder of the Dublin Renters Coalition spoke to Newstalk Breakfast this morning.

Nuclear power can be both stable and safe and should be recruited to supplement wind and solar power and eliminate our dependence on fossil fuels. So wrote William Reville, Emeritus professor of biochemistry at UCC, in the Irish Times and William spoke to Newstalk Breakfast.

A Galway TD is calling for a dedicated online portal allowing cyclists to submit footage of road offences, to be made available in Ireland. This calls comes in light of road safety week, which is currently running until Sunday. Galway East, Fine Gael TD Ciaran Cannon spoke to Shane.

“The Gen Z bashing is getting out of hand.” That’s the view of Damien McCarthy, The CEO of HR Consultancy firm, HR Buddy who says the cohort is being over criticised over the workplace phenomenon of “Quiet Quitting”. Damien McCarthy spoke to Ciara to discuss this.

We recently discussed an investigation is ongoing into reports from customers in South Dublin and Wicklow of an ‘earthy’ taste and smell in their drinking water. But how does the rest of the country fare out? Programme Manager with the EPA’s Office of Environmental Enforcement, Noel Byrne joined Ciara this morning.

Endometriosis affects 1 in 10 women and is often misdiagnosed. “Below the Belt”, is a feature documentary directed by Sharon Cohn with executive producer, Hillary Rodham Clinton, is screening in the IFI tonight It follows several women battling endometriosis aiming to raise awareness and improve healthcare outcomes. Ciara spoke to Lisa Tierney Keogh, Endometriosis Patient and writer.

We speak to former Formula One driver Derek Daly ahead of his son’s Conor NASCAR debut in the US.

There is to be a major overhaul of the Government’s proposed law on the right to request remote working. That was the signal from Tánaiste Leo Varadkar yesterday, but what sort of legislation do we need on the issue? And what does the future of remote work look like? Peter Cosgrave is Managing Director at Futurewise spoke to Newstalk Breakfast this morning.

Ireland is facing energy capacity deficits for the next decade. That’s according to EirGrid - the body that operates Ireland’s electricity grid in their latest Generation Capacity Statement which has been released this morning. For more on this Newstalk Breakfast spoke to Muireann Lynch Energy Economist and Senior Research Officer with ESRI.

A 50c increase on a packet of cigarettes was announced in last week's budget. The rise came into effect on the night of the Budget with the price of a pack of 20 cigarettes now nearly €16. Is this price hike unfair to smokers who have a dependence or is this the right move to entice quitting and prevent uptake? To discuss with Johnathan was Independent TD from Limerick, Richard O’Donoghue and also Director-general of the TobaccoFree Research Institute, Professor Luke Clancy.

Irish Water has told customers in Dublin and Wicklow that water in their homes is safe to drinks. This comes after an investigation is ongoing into reports from customers in South Dublin and Wicklow of an ‘earthy’ taste and smell in their drinking water. The complaints relate to the Vartry Water Treatment Plant which serves customers in Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown, Dublin City and North County Wicklow. Joining Ciara to discuss this was Donna Cooney, Green Party Councillor for Clontarf.

Today marks 60 years since the premiere of the first 007 film Dr. No, starring Sean Connery as the secret agent. Since then, there have been another 24 blockbuster movies and five more Bonds. Joining Ciara and Shane to look back through the years of the most successful franchise in cinema history is Former Irish broadcaster at Newstalk George Hook.

The cabinet has agreed to an exchange of letters between the Government and the European Space Agency to pave the way for Eirsat 1 become Ireland’s first ever satellite in space. Dr David McKeown Engineering Manager for EIRSAT 1 and Assistant Professor in School of Mechanical & Materials Engineering in UCD spoke to Shane this morning.

“Broadly positive.” Those are the words Minister for Health Stephen Donnelly has used to describe the initial findings from a post-pandemic review of Ireland’s handling of Covid-19. A group chaired by former UCD president Prof Hugh Brady is expected to publish its findings in the coming weeks. For more on this Newstalk Breakfast spoke to Professor Sam McConkey Infectious Disease Specialist at RCSI University of Medicine and Health Sciences.

An Exchequer surplus of €7.9 billion was recorded in the year to end September 2022. This compares with a deficit of €6.2 billion in the same period last year. Ciara spoke to Sebastian Barnes Chairperson at the Irish Fiscal Advisory Council. Also, Cabinet has approved a plan to pay three electricity credits to every household over the next six months. But is this enough to save households from soaring energy costs? Daragh Cassidy is Head of communications at Bonkers.ie discussed this on the show.

The Independent Group will bring forward a motion around the provision of free and accessible public transport in the Dáil today. Thomas Pringle, Independent TD for Donegal, and Brian Caulfield, Associate Professor at the School of Engineering at Trinity College Dublin both joined Pat on the show this morning.

When British schools ignore Irish history, is it any wonder Brexit is such a mess? -- Lack of knowledge about the Anglo-Irish relationship past and present has deep personal and political consequences.” Those are the words of secondary school teacher and Irish Examiner columnist - Jennifer Horgan who joined Ciara this morning on the show.