Patrick O'Donovan (Limerick, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

The vast majority will be picked for a particular night and a particular topic. Was anything learned from the experience of the presidential election, when the format spectacularly blew up in the face of RTE? There was unfairness to the people expecting to go on to represent a particular view, whether political, spiritual, religious or economic. A certain degree of fairness is lost in the fact that RTE selects the audience.