Ms Moya Doherty:

I thank the Chairman for inviting RTE to appear before the committee today to discuss governance at the station and the policies and procedures RTE has in place to prevent political bias in our programming and reporting. He has already introduced the senior members of the RTE staff who are with me here today. Mr. Kevin Bakhurst, on my right, is deputy director general and managing director of news, Mr. Tom McGuire is head of RTE news, Mr. David Nally is managing editor, RTE television current affairs, and Ms Deirdre McCarthy is political assignments editor, RTE Oireachtas unit, whom the members will all know well. I hope that between us we can address any questions members may have.

It would be useful to set out the clear statutory and regulatory framework within which RTE must operate and the overarching governance role of the RTE board. I will then ask Mr. Kevin Bakhurst to give members a clear understanding of the editorial structures, policies and procedures that RTE has in place to ensure independence, fairness and impartiality across RTE's output, particularly as it relates to RTE’s political coverage.

This division is deliberate, as it echoes the distinction between the governance role of the board and the operational role of the director general, the executive and line management. The RTE board should not and does not involve itself in day-to-day editorial decision making. While the board must satisfy itself that editorial decision making is being appropriately managed along with other activities in accordance with RTE’s and its obligations, the day-to-day making of individual editorial decisions rests with programme makers, their editors and editorial management. Notwithstanding that the term "independent broadcasters" is routinely used to describe commercial television and radio broadcasters in Ireland, the public service broadcasters, RTE and TG4, are the only media organisations in the country that are prescribed by law, in section 98 of the Broadcasting Act 2009, to be independent in everything they do. Furthermore, as I said to this committee when I was here a few weeks ago, it is the prescribed duty of the board of RTE to safeguard this independence from State, political, orcommercial interests.

As a not-for-profit public service media organisation, RTE is not here to serve the interests of shareholders, wealthy owners or private equity firms but rather the public, with clear statutory obligations and appropriate regulation and governance. This fundamental difference is crucial to understanding the very high levels of trust RTE retains with Irish audiences.

RTE exists to give space to the different shades of political opinion, to be accessible to younger and older people, be they farmers, teachers or technology workers from anywhere and everywhere in the country. RTE is here to give voice to the views of water protesters as much as those of Irish Water. As it clearly states in section 114 of the Broadcasting Act, RTE must be responsive to the interests and concerns of the whole community and, as I said a few weeks ago to this committee, representing the interests of viewers and listeners is the board’s first duty.

Different groups of people and interests will challenge and disagree with RTE's programming and editorial choices from time to time - that is to be expected. RTE would not be doing its job otherwise. What is crucial though is that RTE is not beholden to any group or viewpoint, and that we ensure RTE is as fair, impartial and accurate as possible. There is a range of codes, regulations and processes designed to ensure that RTE maintains these standards, which I will explain shortly, but ultimately it is the public trust we retain with audiences which is so important.

In any given week, 96% of Irish people access RTE's services. Across last year, when surveyed by the independent research company, Behaviour and Attitudes, 87% of Irish adults - that is, those aged 18 plus - indicated that they trusted RTE news and current affairs output. As part of the same analysis RTE came out as one of the most trusted organisations in the country. It is only because of these high levels of trust, earned over a long period of time and countless editorial decisions, that RTE can and does take on the most difficult of subjects.

It is why when a current and a former Government Minister decided to give very personal interviews recently they chose to do so on two different programmes, both on RTE Radio 1. It is why when very significant news events occur, either domestic or international, RTE's viewership, listenership and online statistics grow substantially. It is also why, when RTE made serious editorial mistakes a number of years ago, it was an issue of such concern both inside and outside RTE, leading to a thorough review of all RTE's editorial processes.

Maintaining the trust of the public is the most important measure for public service media. The independence, impartiality and accuracy of RTE's programming and reporting are essential to this trust. The notion that RTE could or would perpetuate political bias in its output, as suggested by the invitation here today, makes little sense, primarily because it would fundamentally undermine the public trust in everything RTE does.

Furthermore, it would not be compatible with the law or tolerated by the regulator. The law is very clear about what is required of broadcasters when it comes to news and current affairs programming. RTE, like all licensed broadcasters in the State, is required by the Broadcasting Act 2009 to report and present the news in an objective and impartial manner and without any expression of the broadcaster’s own views. In current affairs programming, including matters which are either of public controversy or the subject of current public debate, broadcasters must be fair to all interests concerned and the broadcast must be presented in an objective and impartial manner and without any expression of the broadcaster’s own views. Should this prove impracticable in regard to a single programme, two or more related broadcasts may be considered as a whole, if the programmes are transmitted within a reasonable period of each other.

There is a series of regulatory mechanisms by which RTÉ must account for how it fulfils these core statutory obligations. Every year RTE must submit to the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland an annual statement of performance commitments. Within this process RTE makes clear commitments that relate to maintaining and growing trust in RTE's news and current affairs output and in maintaining public confidence in the impartiality and objectivity of key output. The board recently signed off on RTE’s 2015annual statement of performance commitments.

Unlike other parts of the media, broadcasting in general and public service broadcasters, in particular, are subject to significant regulatory oversight, oversight that is firmly rooted in statute. Such oversight would not tolerate political bias within the country’s primary public service media organisation. I am conscious that I have only recently been officially appointed chair of the RTE board and that this board was only fully complete in February. It has only met twice to date.Nonetheless, I am very clear as to what role the board has in regard to the impartiality and accuracy of RTE’s news and current affairs programming and reporting. Just last week Mr. Kevin Bakhurst gave the board a thorough briefing on the editorial decision making structures within RTE news and current affairs. Such engagements will continue to be a regular feature of the board’s work, but at this point the board and I have no reason to believe that RTE is not discharging its editorial responsibilities correctly and with the appropriate checks and balances.

I will now ask Mr. Bakhurst to give the members a brief overview of RTE's current editorial structures, policies and procedures.