Lunchtime Live

For this week’s Ask the Expert, Andrea Gilligan is joined by Frank McGrath, Hearing Aid Audiologist with Ear Care Clinics, to answer all of your hearing-related questions!

It’s International Coffee Day this week!

Technically it was yesterday, but with Budget day overshadowing things, it seemed right to still celebrate!

But, do we know enough about the stuff we’re consuming every day?

Andrea is joined by James McCormack, CEO of the Dublin Barista School and Heather Leeson, Registered Nutritional Therapist with Glenville Nutrition.

The amount that a person can receive as a gift or inheritance from a relation before having to pay Capital Acquisitions Tax will be increased as part of Budget 2025.

Inheritance tax, which is technically known as the Capital Acquisitions Tax (CAT), is a tax of 33% on gifts and inheritances which kicks in at a particular limit. It does not have to be paid if the inheritance does not reach this limit.

The threshold when inheritance tax must be paid has been increased from €335,000 to €400,000 for children. Is this fair?

Andrea is joined by Jean Cashman, Registered Tax Consultant, Rowena Quinn, Managing Partner at Hunters Estate Agent and listeners to discuss.

‘Anyone else find friendship in their 40s hard?’ – so asked Journalist Niamh O’Reilly as she scribbled on the wall of a bathroom cubicle!

Niamh joins Andrea as well as other listeners to discuss why she wrote that.

Lunchtime Live's Reasons to be Happy looks at some of the news stories that you might have missed that will leave you feeling more optimistic.

Ciara Treacy, Newstalk’s Digital Content Creator, joined Andrea this week to share all the things to make you smile!

Earlier on Newstalk, Home Show Presenter Sinead Ryan spoke about being a Godparent despite not being religious, and whether or not that matters. 

What do you think?  Should you have to be religious to be a Godparent?

Andrea is joined by listeners including Anne Marie McAuley, Wedding and Family Celebrant to discuss.

Are we losing the ability to write legibly?

Poor handwriting in Scottish schools is holding pupils back with assessors increasingly deducting marks from “indecipherable” exam papers.

Do you think handwriting has gotten worse?

Andrea is joined by listeners to discuss.

This year on Lunchtime Live we’ve been looking at things that we can do in order to make ourselves that bit happier and healthier.

This week, Andrea is joined by Collette O’Hagan to learn all about marathons - she’s about to do her 1,000th!

Irish people are living in their childhood home until they are 28 on average, according to an analysis from the European Union’s statistic agency Eurostat.

The Irish figures are above the EU average of 26.3 years, while people in Finland are living independently at the age of just 21.4 years.

What do you think about the younger generation staying at the parental level until so much later in life?

Andrea is joined by listeners to discuss and share their experiences.

Dr Niall Breen from the Portmarnock GP Clinic joined Andrea Gilligan to tackle your medical queries.