Timmy Dooley (Clare, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I take it that the Minister shares the concerns of the chairman of the RTE authority, Mr. Savage, that the €5 million that is being cut from RTE's budget is, to pardon the pun, a savage cut. He rightly identified that we live cheek by jowl with another country with whom we share the same language that has the economies of scale that have allowed the development and creation of some very considerable mega-broadcasting authorities. He is right to say that they are targeting our audience and advertisers and have the wherewithal to develop content that our audience finds amenable. The Minister has identified the savings RTE has already made. It is my contention and certainly that of the chairman of the RTE authority that a reduction of €5 million will hamstring RTE to an inordinate extent in terms of the development of the kind of home-grown content that is important to attract an Irish audience. The documents that find their way into The Irish Timestoday under the by-line of Harry McGee and Arthur Beesley clearly identify that the Minister has already recognised that RTE has taken a hit of about €11 million if one takes into account the reduced licence fee that social welfare provides for it. Could the Minister talk a bit about that? Does he agree with the chairman of the RTE Authority that RTE is effectively being asked to bear the cost of a national welfare policy?