Rachel Ní Chuirc (Quirke)

'I'm going to address some of the disparaging remarks the tánaiste made about the online publication The Ditch, a publication that has reported on the use of for munitions transfers bound for conflict zones and has shared crucial information about US pressure over the Occupied Territories Bill passing. 'In a democracy we cannot ignore or diminish devices that bring difficult truths to light – nor should we attempt to discredit the sources of uncomfortable information based on what you perceive to be a political bias. 'Questioning the political motivation of truth-tellers is a heinous practice. If applied to other media organisations who hold us to account, we would rightly be called out for it. 'A free press should be inclusive of all voices, especially those who dare to challenge powerful interests and bring uncomfortable facts to the public's attention. 'The uncomfortable fact in this instance has been that, through indifference, Irish airspace, sovereign airspace, is being used to transfer munitions. And that fact only came to light because of the good work of those reporters.'