The Agenda

1,187 people were before the district courts across Ireland for burglary offences in the first 9 nine months of 2025. A further 347 people were sent forward for trial in the circuit court for burglary offences between January and September 2025. That is according to figures provided to Ireland South MEP and former barrister Cynthia Ní Mhurchú from the Irish Courts Service.  The figures point to a relatively small group of repeat offenders that are responsible for a disproportionate share of burglary offences. In the first nine months of 2025, 1,771 burglary cases came before the District Court, involving just 1,187 individuals — highlighting a high level of repeat or multiple offending. A similar pattern emerged in the Circuit Court, where 729 burglary cases were tried over the same period, committed by just 529 offenders.Cynthia Ní Mhurchú joined us on The Agenda this morning to tell us more about this.

Local authorities across Ireland are being urged to take decisive action to increase the employment of people with disabilities, following what disability advocates describe as a ‘persistent failure of ambition, transparency, and accountability at national level’Cothrom, a disability rights and equality organisation, co-founded by well-known advocates and activists, Dr Margaret Kennedy ( Wicklow) and Michael O’Dowd, (here in Louth) is launching a nationwide campaign calling on councillors to adopt higher employment targets for people with disabilities within their local authorities ,and to lead by example where central government has fallen short.The campaign calls for 8% employment by 2027 and 10% employment by 2030.This stands in stark contrast to the Government’s recently published strategy, which maintains a 6% target until 2030 — a figure Cothrom says should be regarded as a ‘minimum baseline, not a ceiling’.Aontu rep in Louth and co-founder of Cothrom, Michael O’Dowd, joined us on The Agenda this morning to tell us more about this.

Ireland has announced new humanitarian funding for Ukraine, with three leading Irish NGOs each receiving €1 million to support communities affected by the ongoing conflict. Minister of State for International Development and Diaspora Neale Richmond confirmed that Concern, the Irish Red Cross and Trócaire will receive the funding through Irish Aid to deliver urgent humanitarian assistance across Ukraine.Representatives of the three organisations met with Minister Richmond to discuss the evolving humanitarian situation and how Ireland can maximise the impact of its support. The funding is aimed at reaching those most in need through trusted partners with strong local connections.Minister Richmond joined us on The Agenda this morning to talk to us some more about this.

Aware, the national mental health organisation, has said that not all January anxiety is bad for you.Knowing the difference between good and bad days versus longer periods of depression and anxiety is key.Aware's education programmes can play a role in helping people understand the differences, the organisation, which helps people and their families impacted by anxiety, depression, bipolar, and mood-related conditions, said.It added that learning more about your mental health could be a good New Year's resolution.After the busyness of Christmas, it can be normal to feel drained in energy, low, and feeling the anticlimax after the festive period, Dr Susan Brannick, clinical psychologist and clinical director with Aware, said.Dr Susan Brannick joined us on The Agenda this morning to talk to us some more about this.

Today, the Labour Party will introduce a bill into the Dáil to create legal standing for ‘No Wait Cards’ for people with chronic and invisible illnesses and who are in urgent need of toilet facilities.Labour’s Equal Status (Access to Toilet Facilities) Bill 2025 aims to change this by placing No Wait Cards on a statutory footing, ensuring that retail shops and businesses with staff toilets make them available to those who need them.‘No Wait Cards’ are issued by organisations such as Crohn’s & Colitis Ireland and Spinal Injuries Ireland and aim to empower individuals to request access to toilet facilities when urgency strikes.The card is a critical support for many people with medical conditions such as Inflammatory Bowel Disease, which affects at least 40,000 people in Ireland, however, it has no legal standing in Ireland.We were joined on The Agenda this morning by Labour TD & spokesperson on Social Protection; Children, Disability and Equality, Mark Wall, who told us more about this.

Many people believe immigration is happening in Ireland on a larger scale than it really is, according to the Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI).The ESRI has described the "misperception" as strongly associated with negative attitudes to immigration.A study, funded by the Department of Justice, Home Affairs and Migration, involved an anonymous online survey of 1,200 adults, representative of the national population.It asked participants to estimate key facts about immigration, including population size, reasons for migration and migrant characteristics such as employment and education levels, social housing uptake, and share of the prison population.On average, people estimated that 28% of the population was born abroad, when the highest official figure is 22%.People also misjudged why migrants come to Ireland.Senior Research Officer at the ESRI and lead author of the report, Dr Shane Timmons, joined us on The Agenda this morning to talk to us some more about this report and its findings.

This week on the programme we heard about how an average of almost 300 people a day have added their names to the opt-out register for organ donation since legislation was introduced six months ago.The legislation makes every adult a donor unless they expressly withdraw their consent.A total of 58,482 people had opted out of the scheme by December 31st, the Health Service Executive (HSE) has said, equating to more than 2,000 people every week since the law was effected on June 17th.We were joined on The Agenda this morning by Fiona Walsh (living in Kerry but is originally from Trim), who got in touch with the show yesterday during an interview with did with Colin White from The Irish Kidney Association about the importance of being an organ donor. Fiona contacted us to tell us about her 9-year-old son Cialin, who is currently undergoing dialysis for kidney failure and is being placed on the kidney transplant list this week. Fiona says that her son receiving a kidney would be “absolutely life changing” and is urging people NOT to opt out of being donors. We also heard from young Cialan himself, who bravely opened up to LMFM about what it's like being a child living with kidney failure and about how it affects his day-to-day life.... The something happened that we were not expecting, and listeners were brought to tears!!If you need to witness something extraordinary that will make you feel good about humanity today, this is it!Presenter Adrian was left speechless.

State-of-the-art changing rooms built at a Meath park for more than €600,000 remain locked almost three years after their official opening, prompting renewed criticism from a local councillor.Aontú councillor Emer Tóibín said it is “beyond baffling” that a caretaker has not been appointed to the Blackwater Park changing facilities, despite “repeated assurances” that a recruitment process was underway.The building at Blackwater Park, which includes changing rooms with shower facilities and public toilets, was officially opened in March 2023.Councillor Toibin joined us on The Agenda this morning to talk to us some more about this.