The Agenda

Fianna Fáil MEP Cynthia Ní Mhurchú is calling for the introduction of stricter measures aimed at improving road safety, including a potential night-time curfew for novice drivers and the use of AI-enabled cameras to detect mobile phone use and seatbelt offences.She says road safety figures are moving in the wrong direction, with young drivers particularly at risk during night-time hours, although she stresses that any curfew would need to include exemptions for those travelling for work.

An estimated 318,000 Irish homes watched the Champions League match final on illegal dodgy box streams, new figures provided by Gaming Compliance International have revealed. The company traced illegal streaming to 318,000 unique Irish IP addresses, with a total of 1.2 million views of 90 seconds or more on an illegal stream. By contrast, an estimated 434,000 watched Arsenal play Paris Saint Germain for free on RTÉ, with a further 474,000 watching later on RTÉ Player. 

The EU is being accused of taking an "ICE-like" approach to immigration.Justice Minister Jim O'Callaghan was in Brussels yesterday to discuss migration issues with his European counterparts.It follows an EU decision earlier this week, which allows member states to send migrants who've been ordered to leave the country to “return hubs” outside the bloc

New figures show a “massive” increase in the number of incidents recorded at IPAS centres throughout the country, and indicate a concerning trend of “transferring bad actors from one location to another”, Aontú leader and Meath-West TD Peadar Tóibín has said.  He has described the trend as a “massive increase” and has raised concerns about what he claims is the “transferral of bad actors from one location to another” within the system.This morning on The Agenda we heard some more about this.

With First Holy Communion season now concluded, attention is turning to the role the tradition continues to play in modern Irish life and whether it will remain as central in the years ahead.New census figures show a continued decline in the number of people identifying as Roman Catholic, prompting wider reflection on how religious traditions are evolving in Ireland.Dr Maedbh King of Trinity College says she has been considering the place of First Holy Communion in today’s society and that neither she nor her partner are religious and do not intend to raise their children in a faith, yet they are likely to be involved in school-based Communion preparations.She argues that preparation for the sacrament should take place outside of school hours, as is the case in other European countriesDr Maedbh King joined us on The Agenda this morning to talk to us some more about this.

Local Councillor in Navan Alan Lawes says protests will continue outside Meath County Council offices following demonstrations that took place there last night over the handling of a case involving a woman seeking emergency accommodation.Councillor Lawes says he spent the night inside the council building alongside the woman, claiming she had been refused emergency accommodation and left without adequate support. He says the protest action is aimed at securing urgent intervention and insists the situation could not be allowed to continue.He says the action will continue until suitable accommodation is provided, arguing that the woman remains in a vulnerable situation and needs immediate assistance and proper housing support.Councillor Alan Lawes joined on The Agenda this morning to talk to us some more about this.

One of Ireland's leading addiction treatment providers is warning that rising health insurance premiums and shrinking levels of cover are making it increasingly difficult for people to access vital addiction services.Smarmore Castle has responded to the latest Health Insurance Authority report, which found that average premiums increased by more than 10 per cent last year, while many policies offered reduced benefits. The centre says the trend is leaving addiction patients behind at a time when demand for treatment remains high.The organisation is also calling on major insurers to expand access to addiction treatment, arguing that many consumers may be unaware of the limitations in their cover until they seek help. It says barriers to securing agreements with some insurers are ultimately restricting choice and access for patients and families.Keith Cassidy, Executive Director of Smarmore Castle, joined us on The Agenda this morning to discuss this in more detail.

A major investigation is underway following a significant fish kill on the River Glyde in County Louth, with Inland Fisheries Ireland and the Environmental Protection Agency working to determine the cause.The incident, which occurred in the vicinity of Tallanstown, has affected a considerable stretch of the river. Fisheries officers have discovered a number of dead fish species, including adult and juvenile Atlantic salmon, brown trout, eel, pike and other coarse fish. Samples have been sent for laboratory analysis, while the full scale of the environmental damage and the number of fish deaths are still being assessed.The River Glyde is an important local waterway and there are growing concerns about the impact this incident could have on wildlife, water quality and the wider ecosystem.Local Sinn Féin Councillor Pearse McGeough joined us on The Agenda this morning to tell us more about this.

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.