Dear Editor,
Is it time 'Questions & Answers' on RTÉ was given a shake up? It seems like a showcase for party hacks, out of touch journalists and humourless Trinity academics.

A recent panel, not surprisingly, were all people who had voted 'Yes' to the Lisbon Treaty. Was any effort put in to having a panel, which would invoke a lively debate with diverse opinions? It was a case of the elites talking down to the rest of us and then calling this a political discussion.

Open debates held around the country before the referendum were very enlightening and were definitely not one sided. So, why all this dumbing down by RTÉ in its political programmes? One panel member on Q&A suggested that, with regard to Lisbon, voters might be asked a question like, 'Do we want to be in or out of the EU?' Does he think we are all a bunch of half-wits? If the only purpose of this would be to get a mandate for the Dáil to ratify the Lisbon Treaty through the back door would this not be 'cut.....ism' at it's best?.

Some panel members had a bee in their bonnet about Declan Ganley. Is it because he bet them at their own game with his own money? Get over it! Ye are the ones giving him the limelight now! How dare the likes of Dick Roche use taxpayers' money to question the outcome of a legally held plebiscite. Can he not accept that, you win some, you loose some, that is politics?

It is time to bin Questions & Answers and for RTé to come up with a format for open 21st century political debate with a good mix of seasoned debaters.

How can you have off-the-cuff debates when the panel choose the questions they prefer before the programme starts? The whole programme is managed and staged to make the panel look good. This not a criticism of John Bowman whom I admire.

Sincerely,
Nuala Nolan,
24 Bowling Green,
Galway

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