A SENIOR lecturer in social policy in Trinity College Dublin was given leave in the High Court yesterday to challenge RTE's decision in the November 1995 divorce Referendum to limit political party broadcasts to certain established political parties.
Mr Anthony Coughlan, of Crawford Avenue, Drumcondra, Dublin, who is a former secretary of the now disbanded Campaign for Fair Referenda, is seeking a declaration that RTE must allocate party political broadcasts in referendums in a manner that is consistent with its obligation to be fair and impartial in its coverage of the referendum issues.
Mrs Justice McGuinness also granted Mr Coughlan leave to seek a declaration that the Broadcasting Complaints Commission was in breach of its statutory duties in dealing with his complaint in January 1996 on the way RTE allocated the party political broadcasts.
Mr Coughlan said his application for a judicial review arose out of his concern for the broadcasting imbalance which, in his opinion, had been shown by RTE in the run-up to the November 1995 divorce referendum as well as in several previous referendums.
He has alleged that RTE construed its obligations in a way which failed to be impartial and fair to the proponents of the Yes and No sides in referendums, and to citizens generally, as regards their entitlement to fair treatment by the public broadcasting media of the issues involved in referendums.
In December 1995 Mr Coughlan sent a letter to Mr Joe Barry, the then director-general of RTE, to complain about the way uncontested broadcast facilities had been granted to the political parties in the Oireachtas in the last week of the divorce referendum campaign.
In January 1996 Mr Bob Collins replied to Mr Coughlan on behalf of the director-general pointing but that all the considerations raised by him had been taken into account by RTE.
Mr Collins said RTE was satisfied it was not in breach of any of its statutory obligations under the Broadcasting Authority Acts.