SINN FÉIN TD Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire has settled a defamation claim against RTÉ and presenter Joe Duffy over comments made on the radio programme Liveline.

Ó Laoghaire, Sinn Féin’s education spokesman and a TD for Cork South-Central, first filed proceedings against the broadcaster in July 2020.  

Ó Laoghaire confirmed that the case had been settled but did not comment further. RTÉ said it was not its policy to comment on legal cases. 

It’s believed the comments at the centre of the case were made by Duffy during an edition of Liveline broadcast shortly after this year’s general election, in which members of the public called in to suggest ministers in a “fantasy cabinet”.

Comments made by Duffy on the same show also led to an apology to another Sinn Féin TD, Aengus Ó Snodaigh, after it was wrongly suggested he had been found guilty of a public order offence.

The edition of the show has since been removed from the RTÉ website.