RTÉ PRESENTER ÁINE Lawlor has signed off from the national broadcaster after over 40 years.

Lawlor presented her final The Week in Politics programme this afternoon.

From Coolock in Dublin, she joined RTÉ in 1984. By 1995 she had joined the team of the flagship radio show Morning Ireland.

She continued working on the programme until 2011, when she took time off to undergo cancer treatment. In 2013, she took up the role hosting The Week in Politics.

Áine Lawlor, then of Morning Ireland, in 1999. Leon Farrell / Photocall Ireland!/RollingNews.ie Leon Farrell / Photocall Ireland!/RollingNews.ie / Photocall Ireland!/RollingNews.ie

Her colleague political correspondent Micheál Lehane said RTÉ will miss her “poise and precision”. A montage of Lawlor’s highlights while presenting the political programme played at the end of the show.

When the montage ended, Lawlor said she didn’t know her colleagues were going to showcase her work. 

“It’s all been very emotional after four decades in RTÉ,” she said, holding tissues.

She issued her thanks to her longstanding colleagues, but also to the politicians who took questions and appeared on the show over the years. The presenter said she hoped she had been “tough but fair”, and emphasised the vital role of verified and factual journalism.

Hitting out at online abuse experienced by elected representatives, she said, “they and we deserve better”.

The past few years in RTÉ have been difficult for many, with various scandals over pay and financial management, she said, and expressed her gratitude to the staff at the station. 

Political coverage editor Joe Mag Raollaigh said of her retirement: “No doubt there will be plenty of time for that in her garden and her allotment, along with husband Ian and the rest of her family.

“RTÉ’s loss is her family’s gain.”