The chair of the Clare branch of the Irish Farmers's Association has expressed fear that Irish MEPs may be powerless to resist the European Union's willingness to adopt the Mercusor Deal. Thousands of farmers and supporters, along with representatives from the country's MEPs have gathered in Athlone to protest against the EU-Mercosur trade agreement. The deal was agreed to by 20 EU member states with only Ireland, France, Poland, Austria and Hungary in opposition, however, the deal must be ratified by the European Parliament which is set to vote on the matter in a couple of weeks. Clare IFA Chair Stephen Walsh claims pressure from Germany, which is set to export high volumes of cars to South America, will be difficult to overcome.

The number of electric vehicles sold in Clare rose by 61% last year. New figures from the Society of the Irish Motor Industry show there were 390 electric vehicles sold in this county in 2025. There were marked declines in combustion engine sales, with Petrol and Diesel falling of by 16% and 23% respectively. SIMI Director General Brian Cooke says it was a record year for the industry.

For the first time in it's history, no dogs were surrendered to Clare's dog shelter over the Christmas period. It's the only occasion the local pound hasn't had to offer emergency accommodation to pets for the festive period since it's opening in 1986. It follows extensive efforts from shelter staff and Clare's County Dog Warden. Frankie Coote says they're delighted with the result.

Coming up the show: We will reflect on the positive start for Clare hurling where victory over Limerick in the Munster Hurling League sees the Banner in with a shot of reaching the final when they take on Cork on Monday evening; and this afternoon we saw St Flannan's set up an all Clare Harty Cup semi final against St Joseph's Tulla We will also look back on the first two games of the Paul Madden era for Clare football with just over two weeks to go now until the National League starts, and also details of how you can help in that effort by getting behind the Clare Football Supporters Club Poker Classic next weekend. Colaiste Muire are looking forward to a Munster camogie final, the race for the Clare Premier Division title heats up this weekend and a few more bits too

Stacey's passion for music and song writing started at a very young age. She adored watching Hannah Montana and would sing along to all of her songs, she even bought her tour dvd and used to pretend to be a back up singer at her concerts. Her entire life is centered around music. It has been her muse, therapy and happiness for as long as she can remember. She wrote songs from the age of 8 and used to perform for her family all of the time. She had always wanted a career in music, but its taken her a long time to get to where she is going with releases, but she is currently working on 12 songs that will be released monthly from August 2026 and throughout 2027. Throughout her teenage years and in to her early 20's she has dipped her feet into multiple industries. At 18 years old she won a TV series in Canada called The Fashion Hero. She was the youngest contestant of the show and returned for it's second season and worked along side AJ Mclean from the Back Street boys. It was an incredible experience and she is so grateful to have been part of it. She also travelled and did mental health awareness talks in secondary schools to encourage children to speak up on bullying or mental struggles.

On Friday's Morning Focus, Alan Morrissey sat down with Clare Fm's Derrick Lynch to look ahead to a packed weekend of sporting fixtures. Games Previewed: TUS Dr Harty Cup: St Flannan's College v Our Lady Templemore (Friday, TUS campus, Moylish, 1:30pm) Munster Junior B Camogie Final: Colaiste Muire v Clonakilty (Saturday, Clarecastle, 1:45pm) Moloney Hardware Premier Division of the Clare District Soccer League:

Clare Museum’s Lecture Series present a talk by Bryn Coldrick and Tom Cassidy’s ‘The Forgotten Defenders - Pillboxes of the Shannon Estuary.’ It will take place at 7.30pm on Wednesday, January 14, 2026. This talk will present the findings of archaeological and built heritage investigations, historical research, and community engagement being carried out on World War Two-era pillboxes in the vicinity of the Shannon Estuary. On Friday's Morning Focus, Alan Morrissey was joined by Bryn Coldrick, Senior Consultant with Archaeological Management Solutions based in Kilrush. Photo (c) Clare County Council

It's hoped a new community training programme will empower new and existing groups county-wide. The Clare Local Development Company, in partnership with Levie Consulting, announced the launch of the Connecting Clare Communities Training and Mentoring Programme. The community-led initiative offers workshops, webinars and mentoring to build capacity in areas like leadership, grant proposals, and volunteer management. Community Link Worker at CLDC, Anneli Vaughan is inviting people across Clare to have their say:

Clare County Council claims "under-occupancy" in social homes is keeping families on the housing list. Local representatives are pointing to infrastructural shortfalls and bottlenecks in the planning system as a new report has found the local authority must boost its social housing stock by almost 60% to meet demand.

The Limerick Writers' Centre and the Mid-West Regional Drugs & Alcohol Forum announced the launch of Frontline Voices, a powerful new collection that shines a light on the essential work being carried out with vulnerable populations across the Mid-West region and beyond. Frontline voices brings together experiences and insights of frontline workers who dedicate themselves to supporting some of society's most marginalized individuals. To find out more, Alan Morrissey spoke with Michael Lacey, from Lisdoonvarna, Chairperson of Mid-Western Regional Drug and Alcohol Forum on Friday's Morning Focus. Photo (c) ilovelimerick.ie

The Irish Creamery And Milk Supplier's Association is warning that Clare's dairy sector will also be drastically affected by the Mercosur deal. The controversial trading pact was approved by 21 EU Ambassadors in a vote today, with only Ireland, France, Poland, Austria and Hungary opposing the agreement, while Belgium abstained. The deal could see up to 99,000 tonnes of South American Beef imported into the EU each year, however, MEPs will have another opportunity to reject it in an upcoming vote. Clare ICMSA Secretary Martin McMahon has been telling Clare FM's Daragh Dolan he believes the deal will bring down the price of cattle for all farmers.

Coimisiún na Meán says it is engaging with the European Commission over concerns that X’s own AI tool Grok is being used to create sexually explicit images of women and children on the social media platform. Women’s Aid, the national organisation working to prevent and address the impact of domestic violence and abuse including coercive control in Ireland, ended its presence on X on Thursday (8th January). The current controversy over Grok has seen the creation and sharing of AI deepfakes, non-consensual intimate imagery, and production of child sexual abuse material, in what Women’s Aid says is a breach of the platform’s own guidelines and regulations. The organisation says this is the tipping point, after watching with growing unease and concern what it is describing as the increased levels of unchecked hate, misogyny, racism and anti-LGBTI+ content on X. To discuss this further, Alan Morrissey was joined by Siobhán O’Leary, Rape Crisis MidWest Director on Friday's Morning Focus. Photo (c) GNEP PHOTO via Canva

The Minister for Social Protection, Dara Calleary, has announced that An Post has been awarded the new Cash Payment Services contract, securing over-the-counter welfare payments at post offices until at least 2028. Around 30% of social protection payments are still made in cash, with An Post expected to handle roughly 25 million payments this year. But after months of concern about post office closures, particularly in rural areas, is this contract the lifeline post offices were hoping for, or just a short-term fix? Alan Morrissey was chatting with Fianna Fáil Councillor Tom O’Callaghan, spokesperson for the Independent Postmasters Union about this on Friday's Morning Focus. Photo (c) An Post

Now in its fourth year, the volunteer-led Resonance Festival, returns this February to Killaloe and Ballina on the shores of Lough Derg. The festival brings together leading voices from economics, culture, sport, media and music. To tell us what’s new for Resonance in 2026 and why the move to February matters, Alan Morrissey was joined by the Chair of Resonance Festival, Steve Coakley.

Transport Infrastructure Ireland is being urged to conduct an "ongoing review" of the M18 and N18 in Clare to ensure the safety of the route. Following assessments of Junction 13 Tulla Road and Junction 14 Barefield, the agency has agreed to lengthen the off-ramps at Junction 13. This decision was made, it says, because this junction is more heavily trafficked. Maghera Fianna Fáil Councillor Pat Hayes believes the off-ramps at Junction 14 as well as the on-ramps at both junctions must be addressed.

Joining Alan Morrissey on Thursday's Morning Focus was Emmet Condon, organiser of A Sliver of Light, Homebeat’s midwinter music and arts weekender, which returns to Hotel Doolin this January. Taking place from the 23rd to the 25th, the festival brings three days of cutting-edge contemporary live music, DJs and curated experiences to the West Clare coast, featuring Irish and international artists including Session Victim, Nick Höppner and Icelandic singer JFDR. Emmet spoke about the vision behind A Sliver of Light and what people can expect from its second edition. Photo (c) eventbrite.ie

If you’re already struggling with your New Year’s resolutions, don't give up, you might just need a different strategy. On Thursday's Morning Focus, Alan Morrissey spoke with Lynda Duffy, Rapid Transformational Therapist and Mindset Coach to discuss this further. Photo (c) lyndaduffy.ie

Danny Lynch from Le Chéile, Barefield was back in-studio for the first Taste Of The Week for 2026. On Thursday's Morning Focus with Alan Morrissey, Danny introduced us to a lovely chicken cordon bleu and much more.

On this week's episode of Clare Women In Business, Pat Flynn chats with Helen Lowe, a visual artist based in Quin, Co Clare. Clare Women in Business is funded by Coimisiún na Meán with the television licence fee.

The EU is due to vote on the arrangement on Friday, which would increase trade opportunities between Europe and Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay. The Taoiseach says huge progress has been made in relation to the deal, but says he doesn't have confidence that Irish farmers won't be under pressure if the deal goes through. Speaking in China, Micheál Martin told reporters that Ireland will vote no. Eddie Punch, Cratloe farmer and former General Secretary of the Irish Cattle and Sheep Farmers’ Association was live in-studio on Thursday's Morning Focus with Alan Morrissey.