Limerick TD says election not a two-horse race

LIMERICK City TD Maurice Quinlivan says RTE is “failing in its duty” as the state broadcaster by excluding Sinn Fein from the televised debates.

Fine Gael leader Leo Varadkar and Fianna Fail leader Micheal Martin will face off in the final days of the campaign for Election 2020, which takes place on Saturday, February 8.

However, Mr Quinlivan believes excluding his party’s voice “does a disservice to the public interest”.

He said: “This general election has been framed by some as a two-horse race between Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil; two parties that have been in a confidence and supply arrangement since 2016. Regrettably, this includes the national broadcaster RTÉ, who have chosen to exclude Sinn Féin from its leaders debate in the final week of the election; despite the fact that Sinn Féin has led opposition to their government arrangement over the past four years.”

He said the broadcaster’s decision is “quite frankly, wrong”.

"Politics is about people and it is about policies. It is about opinions and it is about views. " It is not about personality contests. Yet, this is what RTÉ are proposing to host by facilitating a debate between two parties with no real discernible policy differences and no alternative vision for the country,” Mr Quinlivan added.

Off the back of this, Sinn Fein’s director of elections Pearse Doherty has written to RTE to raise concerns on the matter, with the party also seeking legal advice.

“This election is about much more than these two parties. It is not a two-horse race and the media - particularly the national broadcaster - has a responsibility to make sure that all voices are heard. Excluding other views does a disservice to the public interest and prevents the public from hearing real issues being debated. That is Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil's game plan. They want this election to be about them,” he added, “But it's not. It is about the Irish people and our future.”