Mary O'Rourke (Fianna Fail)

It would be a worthwhile debate. There will be no point in throwing up our hands when the report is imminent if we have not had an input.

Senator Ryan also raised the issue of the non-acceptance of advertisements from Christian religions by RTÉ. Initially, it concerned Catholic advertisements. I do not know if others are concerned. We discussed this matter at Cabinet about two years ago when a legal distinction was made between giving information and a promotion which could be considered as proselytising. It is interesting that the issue was raised today from different points of view. Some wanted to see equality of treatment as between any and no religion while others wanted the Catholic religion to have emphasis. Whether RTÉ was adhering to an out-of-date legal opinion, the refusal of the advertisement was wrong. The refusal of an advertisement from a particular church was an old fashioned way of showing itself to be pluralist and tolerant. That is quite silly and an inverted form of pluralism. Everyone who pays should be able to advertise.

Senator Ryan also asked what the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform was doing in regard to data. Senator Ó Murchú agreed with him and also commented on the failure of the prosecution to find witnesses in the case of the Colombia Three. I cannot help making a wry comment – I do not know if I would come forward if I was a witness in Colombia. The Senator's point was well made and no doubt the outcome will be interesting. We should be glad that a Senator, travelling in a personal capacity, is present.

Senator Coghlan quoted what I said in May 1999. What a good memory he has.