The Mick Clifford Podcast

Exactly ten years ago this week the UK voted to leave the EU and Brexit was born. At the time there were predictions that this could spell economic disaster for this country but that didn’t come to pass. The UK itself has not fared as well. In fact, the UK is in a bit of a mess, but exactly how much is all of that down to Brexit?Joining us this week to discuss how it happened and what the fall out has been is Ian Cooper, Senior Research Fellow at the Brexit Institute in DCU.

After the recent row between the Minister for Health and the Rotunda Hospital over consultants doing private work, a question arises as to how soon we will have a single tier health service. The move in that direction has been ongoing now for a number of years and while there might be progress it is not always obvious. Joining us this week to discuss the pursuit of a first class health system for all is Irish Examiner Health Correspondent Niamh Griffin.

The Occupied Territories Bill and the triple lock are going to be landing hot and heavy in the public square in the coming months. Both issues elicit deeply felt emotions and questions over what is this state’s role in the wider world, and what should be done about it. Irish Examiner columnist Colin Sheridan regularly touches on these matters and he is this week’s guest on the podcast. 

Michael Healy Rae’s revelation that he believes his brother Danny cost him and Kerry a ministry has rocked the most fabled political dynasty in Irish politics. Is this the end or just a new beginning. Mick Clifford, Deirdre O’Shaughnessy and Louise Burne discuss and dissect.

The Belfast rap trio Kneecap bring second record Fenian and their incendiary mix of Irish-language hip-hop and politics to Cork with two 'intimate' album launch shows at the Savoy Theatre ahead of a show Live at the Marquee on July 6. In this episode, we take a deep dive into the group’s journey - from their early days in Belfast to becoming one of the most talked-about acts in Irish music. Along the way, we explore how Mo Chara, Móglaí Bap and DJ Próvaí have used the Irish language as both a creative tool and a cultural statement, while also courting controversy through their lyrics, performances, and legal battles. On this episode, Irish Examiner assistant news editor Eoghan O'Sullivan is joined by music journalist Dean Van Nguyen, who reviewed Fenian for Pitchfork. He is also the author of Words for My Comrades: A Political History of Tupac Shakur (Penguin Random House, 2025). Together, we look at the band’s rise, their impact, the tension between art and provocation - and what Cork audiences can expect from their live shows this summer.

Two constituencies go to the polls next Friday in byelections created by the resignations from the Dail of Pascal Donohue and Catherine Connolly, who both went on to greater things. Dublin Central and Galway West will vote for their replacements in the first by-elections since the current government assumed office after the 2024 general election. So who’s up and who’s down, what matters what won’t. How will the results impact on party leaders? Irish Examiner Political Correspondent Louise Burne takes the temperature for this electoral event.

Fianna Fail is a century old this year and the party is celebrating the occasion this weekend with its Ard Fheis. But where stands a party that was in the twentieth century one of the most successful vote getters in the developed world. Has the new Ireland bypassed a party whose name translates as the Soldiers of Destiny? Or does it have the capacity to change and thrive with the times. Professor Gary Murphy of DCU is this week’s guest on the podcast.

The Irish Examiner’s Louise Burne has memories of spending time in Temple Street hospital in Dublin as a child to treat a condition with which she was born. The staff were great, the environment and facilities far less so. Recently, she wrote about the children of tomorrow who will have a brand new hospital to cater for their needs. But, at the rate of progress in building the national children’s hospital, we might well ask, will tomorrow come? Louise and Irish Examiner Health Correspondent Niamh Griffin fill us in on the story so far and whether an end is in sight.NOTE: In response to the story relayed by Niamh on this podcast, a spokesperson for CHI said, “all staff concerns are being addressed as they come up in real time in regular sessions across hospital sites.”