In The News

As US president Donald Trump threatens to wipe out Iran and attacks the pope, even some former allies are questioning whether he has grown increasingly unbalanced.His social media post of an AI-generated image of himself as Jesus gave even more ammunition to his detractors.All of this has meant that Trump’s political opponents have become louder in invoking the US constitution’s 25th amendment, a mechanism for ousting a medically unfit president.With no clear end to the war in Iran and no plan from the White House for what should be next, the president’s frustration is palpable. Is his erratic behaviour a manifestation of that frustration or is there something else going on with the near 80-year-old?Irish Times Washington Correspondent Keith Duggan explains.Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Declan Conlon. 

For almost a week there were blockades and go-slows which severely disrupted the country’s road network and Dublin city centre was at a standstill for several days. By the weekend a third of the country’s service stations were out of petrol and diesel because fuel depots were under siege. Gardaí were out in force from the start; on the streets, beside fuel depots, on motorways – watching. So what changed on Thursday? Why did the policing response notch up several gears? Did gardaí expect the Defence Forces to join them on the streets and what did the army know Minister for Justice Jim O’Callaghan’s was about to call on it to act? While it was called a fuel protest – about rising prices – it became clear that anger at the Government motivated many who took to the streets. Irish Times crime and security editor Conor Lally assesses the policing response to the largest protest in the State.Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Aideen Finnegan. 

There have been 45 deaths on Irish roads so far this year – that’s six more people than this time last year. Tragically, 2025 ended as the deadliest on Irish roads in more than a decade with 190 fatalities. Why?What makes Ireland so different from our European neighbours who are successfully tackling this devastating problem?Business economist Sinead O’Sullivan, skilled in collating and analysing data, was prompted by the high level of road deaths to explore the figures to see if she could see a pattern and, by assessing what happens in other countries, suggest five proven solutions.Her findings led her to conclude that this is a public health crisis and needs to be treated as such.On this podcast she explains what those five actions are and why a lack of accountability at official level is costing young lives by ignoring the clear pattern of preventable harm.O’Sullivan runs a road safety accountability campaign at stoproaddeaths.ie.Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Suzanne Brennan and Andrew McNair.

John O’Brien’s scam was simple. Arriving in the US on a tourist visa in 2021, he set himself up as a building contractor in Massachusetts and Rhode Island. By the time the authorities caught up with the 28 year-old, he had conned more than 100 victims out of an estimated $2.5 million.Many of the homeowners who handed him their life savings for promised building work were charmed by his Irish accent and friendly demeanour.Sentencing him to four years and eight months in prison, the judge talked about “the extent and breadth of the harm” done to victims who opened their doors to O’Brien out of kindness and trust. He had pleaded guilty.Many of his victims gave statements in court including Candace Gauvin, a retired school crossing guard, who emptied a life insurance account, eventually paying him more than $90,000 for shoddy work.One of the more than a dozen people who provided character references for O’Brien included fellow Traveller Senator Eileen Flynn who advocated for his early release for the “benefit of his young family”.Local reporter Susan Zalkind was in court in Rhode Island for O’Brien’s case and she explains how the scam worked, how it funded his lavish lifestyle and the impact on the victims.Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Suzanne Brennan.

On Wednesday, as fuel protests over the Government’s response to rising petrol and diesel prices entered their third day it became clear the demands of the protesters showed no signs of being met.Taoiseach Micheál Martin said fuel protesters blocking cities and towns around Ireland are “wrong” and those breaking the law will be penalised.Several distinct but co-ordinated protests took place over the past three days, involving slow-moving convoys on motorways, such as the M1 and M50, as well as the blocking of main roads in Dublin.Those taking part include hauliers and agricultural contractors using large trucks and tractors to disrupt traffic.Irish Times political editor Pat Leahy analyses the political reaction to the protesters and Colm Keena explains who the protesters are and what they want.Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Suzanne Brennan. 

The US, Israel and Iran agreed to a two-week ceasefire on Tuesday barely an hour before US president Donald Trump’s deadline to obliterate Iran was set to expire, with Tehran agreeing to temporarily reopen the Strait of Hormuz.The ceasefire is based on a 10-point proposal from Iran which Trump said was a “workable basis on which to negotiate”.So what is in the proposal and why was Pakistan key to the negotiations?The proposal requires Israel to stop its bombardment of Lebanon, something it has not done with the Israeli ‌military saying ​on Wednesday it has ​carried out ⁠the largest ‌strikes ‌against Lebanon’s ​Hizbullah ⁠since ​this ​war ‌began.So how will that impact on the negotiations which are set to begin on Friday?And what role did China play in the ceasefire negotiations?Beijing-based Irish Times correspondent Denis Staunton analyses the proposal and its chance of delivering lasting peace in the region.Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Suzanne Brennan. 

More details have emerged about the Minister for Finance’s new savings and investment idea which aims to unlock some of the €170bn Irish people are estimated to have on deposit and encourage them to become stock market investors instead.Simon Harris first floated the idea of a Government-endorsed savings plan in February but the details were sparse.The idea is now clearer, though the fine print has yet to be thought through and is likely to be announced around budget time in the autumn.The new Irish scheme will follow the popular Swedish one which sees people putting their savings into an ISK and paying a flat tax – currently about 1 per cent monthly – on their investment over a certain tax-free threshold.Investment products currently available in Ireland have a complex tax system based on capital gains.So is it a good idea? And will risk-averse Irish consumers who prefer to keep their cash at the ready be prepared to become investors?Irish Times economics columnist Cliff Taylor explains – and gives his view on the idea’s likely success.Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Suzanne Brennan. 

It is not surprising that the army’s spy wing is a highly secretive organisation, but lately it’s becoming a little less so, with one of its top bosses giving an interview to The Irish Times. Its job is to protect the State and the Defence Forces from military threats, counter hybrid activity and protect Irish interests overseas. Its expertise is wide, from on-the-ground surveillance to advising the government on strategic threats to our interests.One of its tasks is to monitor the activities of ageing Russian tankers that appear with increased regularity off the west coast.The service is undergoing a transformation: the name change from J2 to the Irish Military Intelligence Service (Imis) is a small part of that.Irish Times investigations reporter Conor Gallagher was invited to the Imis HQ at McKee Barracks to meet one of the top intelligence operatives, to talk spycraft, threats, secrecy and a new phase of recruitment.Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Suzanne Brennan. 

Gardaí have identified a person of interest in the disappearance of Icelandic man Jon Jonsson. The suspect, who's from Liverpool, is a veteran criminal with a history of large scale drug dealing.Jonsson, who'd come to Ireland for a poker tournament, vanished on February the 9th 2019. He was caught on CCTV leaving the Bonnington Hotel on the Swords Road in north Dublin.Beyond those images, Gardaí have no information about where he went and no trace of him has since been uncovered. One line of enquiry is that this man from Liverpool travelled to Ireland to attack another Icelandic man on the orders of a criminal gang and mistakenly targeted Jonsson.As investigations continue into this new lead, listen back to a podcast originally broadcast in February 2024 that explains the puzzling details of the case.Hosted by Bernice Harrison. Produced by John Casey.