46L.— (1) A broadcaster, in programmes which he or she broadcasts, and a relevant media service provider, in programmes which he or she makes available in a catalogue of the relevant service, shall ensure—

(a) that news is reported and presented in an objective and impartial manner and without any expression of the broadcaster’s or provider’s own views, and

(b) that the treatment of current affairs, including matters which are either of public controversy or the subject of current public debate, is fair to all interests concerned, and that the matter broadcast or made available is presented in an objective and impartial manner and without any expression of the broadcaster’s or provider’s own views.

(2) Should it prove impracticable to apply subsection (1)(b) in relation to a single programme, 2 or more related programmes may be considered as a whole, if—

(a) where the programmes are broadcast, they are broadcast within a reasonable period of each other, or

(b) where the programmes are made available on a relevant service, they are made available in the same way on the relevant service within a reasonable period of each other.

(3) Nothing in subsection (1) prevents a broadcaster from broadcasting, or a relevant media service provider from making available, party political programmes, provided that an unfair preference is not given to any political party—

(a) by a broadcaster, in the allocation of time for such programmes, or

(b) by a relevant media service provider, in the positioning of such programmes in a catalogue of the relevant service.

(4) Subsection (1), in so far as it requires a broadcaster or a relevant media service provider not to express his or her own views, does not apply to news or current affairs relating to a proposal which—

(a) concerns policy as regards broadcasting which is of public controversy or the subject of current public debate, and

(b)  is being considered by the Government or the Minister.

(5) Subject to subsection (6), a provider of a sound broadcasting service shall ensure that the time devoted to the broadcasting of news and current affairs programmes on the service—

(a) is not less than 20 per cent of the broadcasting time of the service, and

(b) if the service is provided for more than 12 hours in any one day, is not less than 2 hours of the broadcasting time of the service between 07. 00 hours and 19. 00 hours.

(6) The Commission may authorise a derogation in whole or in part from the requirement in subsection (5) in the case of a sound broadcasting service, if the Commission is satisfied that the derogation would be beneficial to the listeners of the service.

(7) The sound broadcasting services established and maintained by RTÉ are deemed to be one sound broadcasting service for the purposes of subsection (5).

(8) A failure to comply with this section shall be a contravention for the purposes of Part 8B.]