Station ‘can afford’ service

The chairman of the Oireachtas Communications Committee said that if RTÉ can find the money to poach Ray D’Arcy from Today FM, it can find €250,000 to save the longwave service.

The service was due to end in October but was extended until January 19 over concerns from thousands of elderly Irish emigrants who said the service was their only link with Ireland.

Chairman of the communications committee John O’Mahony said the decision to close the longwave service but hire a highly paid presenter “flies in the face of true public service broadcasting”.