Challenge to unaccountable power should not put off whistleblowers

SOME years ago I found myself in RTÉ’s hospitality suite just after the recording of Questions and Answers. The Government minister who had appeared on the show arrived in, sat down, lit a cigarette and joined in an animated conversation. Some moments later a Dublin West TD — a prominent figure in the opposition who was also a guest on the show — arrived in. He appeared to give a double-take when he got the whiff of smoke, looked uncomfortable and left early.

Later on, after the minister had also departed, John Bowman commented that the opposition TD hadn't waited long. One of the backroom team said she thought he might have been uncomfortable with the tobacco smoke. I can't remember if it was Bowman or his producer who said, "We really need to get no smoking signs in here."

The Government minister in question went on to greater things. He is now Minister for the (smoke-filled) Environment Martin Cullen. To be fair to him, I think he would have been horrified at the thought that his smoking had made anybody uncomfortable. But, like many smokers, he just didn't think. Or, if he did think, abstaining from smoking was simply not an option.