Patrick O'Donovan (Limerick, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

On the broadcasting remit, I welcome the Minister's presence at the committee. I have a huge concern about taking any aspect of the television licence away from An Post. I would not like it to go out from the committee that we were in any way suggesting that. The television licence represents a massive part of An Post's basic income stream. We have had an awful lot of people jumping up and down recently in relation to the Department of Social Protection's letters on diluting the role of An Post and rightly so. I would certainly not want to see that diluted any further. It would put many of our rural post offices in an even more precarious position than they are already in if there were any suggestion of moving the television licence away from An Post. The Minister could kill that here right now by saying it is not on the agenda. He would be doing everybody a favour. Postmasters around the country listening to this will be ringing the Minister, my good friend Deputy Harrington who is also a postmaster, and me to ask if it is true that the Oireachtas committee is suggesting taking away the television licence from them.