The Agenda

Earlier on in the show we heard about how a man stabbed to death off Grafton Street in Dublin’s south inner city tried to flee from his killer but was pursued for a distance before being caught and wounded several times.The man, named as Qayyum Balogun, collapsed on Clarendon Street and could not be revived, with his killer escaping before gardaí arrived.Gardaí believe his killing was part of a wider dispute between rival groups after a gig in the south inner city that ended just before 3am on Monday morning.We were joined on The Agenda this morning by CEO & Founder of the Institute of Antiracism and Black Studies, Dr Ebun Joseph, who told us about how shocked and heartbroken she was to learn of yet another black life gone on the streets of Dublin.

The Government has been accused of “hiding behind” the FAI over its position on the Republic of Ireland’s upcoming World Cup qualifier against Israel in October.Minister of State for Sport Charlie McConalogue said the decision to proceed with the fixture rests with the FAI, adding that the Government respects that position. He also confirmed he will not attend the match, but warned the association could face sanctions from UEFA if it attempted a boycott.He said the coalition will continue to pursue “leadership in the political arena internationally” in relation to Israel, with the aim of building support for sanctions and other measures.However, opposition parties have strongly criticised the Government’s stance, with the Social Democrats tabling Dáil a motion calling for the match to be boycotted. Social Democrats TD Sinéad Gibney described the minister’s comments as a “cop-out” and accused the Government of ignoring previous precedent.Deputy Gibney joined us on The Agenda this morning to talk to us some more about this.

Dublin is “becoming a much safer city” despite a fatal stabbing in the city centre over the bank holiday weekend, according to a local councillor.Fianna Fáil Councillor Rory Hogan made the comments following the death of 21-year-old Qayyum Balogun, who died after an assault in the early hours of Monday morning.Councillor Hogan described the incident as “deeply disturbing” and urged anyone with information to contact Gardaí.He said that due to increased high-visibility policing and recent changes, Gardaí were on the scene within minutes of the incident, and added that he believes Dublin is a safe city, while acknowledging how difficult that can be to reconcile in the wake of such events.Councillor Hogan joined us on The Agenda this morning to talk to us some more about this.

A 21-year-old man who was fatally stabbed in Dublin city centre has been described as an “innocent soul” who was “murdered in cold blood”.Qayyum Balogun, a Maynooth University student and club promoter from Dundalk, died after being attacked on Clarendon Street in the early hours of Monday morning. He had been attending a rap gig near Grafton Street when an altercation between two groups spilled onto the street and escalated into violence.It is understood Mr Balogun tried to flee the scene but was pursued and stabbed several times. Gardaí are continuing their investigation and are examining whether he was caught up in the violence because of his association with others involved, despite having no known links to criminality.We heard more about this on The Agenda this morning.

Louth County Council is preparing to launch a new tourism strategy, with the aim of establishing the county as a distinctive and high-quality destination for visitors from both Ireland and abroad. The strategy, which was presented to councillors at the local authority's May meeting, has been described as ambitious and has received broad support from elected members.Among those welcoming the plan is Dundalk councillor Robert Nash, who praised the significant amount of work that has gone into developing the strategy. However, he believes there is more that can be done to raise Louth's profile and attract visitors to the county. One idea he is putting forward is a new “Go Left for Louth” campaign, aimed at encouraging tourists arriving through Dublin Airport to travel north and discover what Louth has to offer.Councillor Robert Nash joined us on The Agenda this morning to talk to us some more about this.We also heard about this calls for a cross-border water connection to provide a backup supply for customers in north Louth during unexpected outages

A generational smoking ban should be considered as the number of people giving up cigarettes has plateaued, with 13% of adults still smoking on a daily basis.Sunday marked ‘World No Tobacco Day’, with concerns raised around the negative impact the habit has on smokers, their families and the health service.Fine Gael Cork North Central TD Colm Burke has called on his party colleague and health minister Jennifer Carroll MacNeill and the HSE to "get serious" about assessing the viability of introducing a generational smoking ban.The Cork North-Central TD said that in order to meet a 5% reduction target, the HSE must roll out targeted campaigns. Deputy Burke joined us on The Agenda this morning to talk to us some more about this.

The case of Dundalk man Seamus Ludlow was raised once again in Leinster House this week, as the 50th anniversary of his murder was marked on May 2nd. Louth TD Ruairí Ó Murchú used the opportunity to call for a meeting between the Ludlow family, the Minister for Justice and the Garda Commissioner, saying the family has been failed for decades in their search for answers.Addressing Taoiseach Micheál Martin, Deputy Ó Murchú outlined the long and controversial history of the case, highlighting concerns about the original Garda investigation, the information provided by the RUC, and subsequent inquiries into the murder. He said the family had experienced moments of hope over the years, only to be left disappointed by what they believe are missed opportunities and unanswered questions.Deputy Ó Murchú joined us on The Agenda this morning to tell us more about this.

Ireland is moving ahead with controversial new legislation that would ban trade in goods produced in Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank — a move that’s already drawing strong international reaction.Foreign Affairs Minister and Meath-East Fine Gael TD Helen McEntee says the Government hopes to have the legislation passed by mid-July, as Ireland continues to take one of the strongest positions in Europe on Israel’s actions in Gaza and the wider Palestinian territories.Also, we heard about the water outages in Ballivor and across county Meath & Louth.We also discussed what is going on in Slane at the moment between local residents and promoters MCD in relation to the upcoming 2-day concert at Slane Castle…. The Minister says that she fully supports the residents of Slane and that she believes the €30,000 offer for the community is just not enough.