Sir, - The pretext of diversity of opinion has provided a basis on which to justify a weekly column by David Andrews in your paper, running as he does cheek by jowl with Dr Garret FitzGerald in your Saturday editions. After all, the argument goes, a former widely respected Fianna Fail Minister for Foreign Affairs, on the verge of retiring from public life, is someone whose opinions should enjoy parity of esteem with those of a former Fine Gael Taoiseach.
However, the wheels really started to come off this figment of fairness and balance with last Saturday's contribution by Mr Andrews. The value of informed, objective and independent analysis provided by former political insiders has been seriously debased by his gratuitously partisan and deeply unfair attack on Fine Gael over the recent controversy surrounding the Telenor/Esat donation.
Generations ago, when the great principle of press freedom (as a vital component of a transparent and accountable democracy) was being fought over much more uncertain ground, the media of the day faced the constant challenge of resisting attempts at interference and covert control by government.
How times have changed when a pillar of press freedom of the ilk of The Irish Times should provide a weekly platform for a naked propagandist of the ruling party of this country to parade his prejudices and bile against the main opposition party in the guise of diversity of valued opinions. - Yours, etc.,
Charles Flanagan TD,(Fine Gael), Dail Eireann, Dublin 2.