Rónán Mullen (Independent) | Oireachtas source

A report commissioned by the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland has shown declining levels of public trust in RTE. It has fallen from 68%, to 61% in 2015. The Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment, Deputy Naughten, has expressed concerns about this, and I share those concerns. This warrants further investigation and monitoring. It is essential that the State broadcaster has the respect of its audience. Respect has to be earned. Recent RTE output has led to viewers complaining en masseabout a particular television programme. The broadcasting authority issued RTE with a warning notice before Christmas, after "The Ray D'Arcy Show" was found to be biased in its coverage of abortion law. That was the third time such a finding had been made against that programme.

Last year in this House I called for real sanctions to be imposed where journalists, presenters or broadcasting organisations continually breach broadcasting codes. There is no sign of this happening. In the last ten days, hundreds of people contacted RTE to register negative views about the content of the St. Valentine's Day edition of "The Late Late Show". That concerns a matter of public taste.

Issues of fairness and balance in publicly-funded programming go to the essential functioning of our democracy. It has been reported that John Gilligan has been invited to be a guest on "The Late Late Show". There are many concerns about the judgment of our publicly-funded broadcaster.The House should undertake a fresh debate about media standards. More than 1 million people pay the annual €160 licence fee, and they should be getting a return for their investment, particularly given the salaries paid to RTE's leading presenters.

RTE has made very effective current affairs programming in recent years. I referenced an upcoming programme yesterday. It did overhaul its journalistic guidelines following the "Mission to Prey" controversy in 2011. However, there is still a problem. What will be the effect of this warning notice? Will we find out how RTE is to put its house in order following the notice from the BAI, or will there be silence and secrecy? I urge the Minister to continue to ensure that RTE makes high quality content. RTE must earn the respect of the public. I call for a debate on media standards at the earliest opportunity.