Fionnán Sheahan: What Media Minister Catherine Martin really knew about RTÉ exit package

Catherine Martin said four months ago that Kevin Bakhurst told her about a controversial exit package from RTÉ

Fionnán Sheahan

What stood out about Catherine Martin’s press conference the day after the Budget was the amount of cotton wool being wrapped around the Media Minister. Throughout the briefing in Government Buildings, notes were continually being passed to the minister by her civil servants as she faced questions. The officials were keen to help their minister. Fine.

What was striking though were the repeated attempts to restrict questions being put to the minister. Journalists would ask a question, get a word salad of an incoherent answer from the minister and seek to clarify the position. But her handlers seemed intent on not allowing her to be pressed. Three times during that press conference, her officials had to be remonstrated with for trying to take microphones away from the media trying to ask perfectly reasonable questions.