SECTION 31 of the Broadcasting Act was lifted independently of the peace process and should not be reactivated because of the recent ending of the IRA ceasefire, according to the Fianna Fail leader, Mr Bertie Ahern.
Speaking yesterday at the launch of his party's position paper on broadcasting, Mr Ahern said the decision to lift the ban on interviews with spokespersons for Sinn Fein and other named groups "was a decision separate from the peace process. It was taken in isolation and I would hold the view that that's how it should remain".
The Minister for Arts Culture and the Gaeltacht, Mr Higgins expressed the same view in an interview published yesterday in An Phoblacht/Republican News. The interview was carried out before the announcement by the IRA of the ending of its ceasefire.
Fianna Fail's spokeswoman on arts, culture and heritage, Ms Sile de Valera, said that her party intends to introduce legislation "to ensure that major domestic sporting events will not be monopolised by satellite stations and will be protected for viewing on RTE and TV3". Otherwise most people would soon not have access to majorational sporting events.
RTE should be allowed extend its coverage in Northern Ireland, said Ms de Valera. "At present RTE coverage is limited to certain areas in the North as the power from transmitters in Louth and Donegal is reduced, at the insistence of the British who cite European regulations.