Timmy Dooley (Clare, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I will make a couple of final points. I, too, lend my support for the retention of Lyric FM in Limerick. I hope the decision will be taken on sound grounds rather than on a request from the Taoiseach. It would not be appropriate for RTÉ to make a decision based on a request from the Taoiseach just because he is ponying up €10 million of taxpayers' money. The business case stands up and I certainly would not want to think there is political interference here or that this will play into some kind of grandstanding by the Government in that regard. It makes absolute sense and is appropriate that Lyric FM be retained in Limerick. Ms Forbes has been strong in the past on support for the regions and has identified again today the importance of that. It works well.

I wish to follow up on what my colleague, Senator Leyden, said. There is a very strong level of engagement in the regions. This is just my observation but I think RTÉ has upped its game. Perhaps this has just happened because there have been more stories; perhaps it is strategic, which would be great. Even on weekends, I see RTÉ doing a lot more regional stuff. That is what we want to see. As the removal of Lyric FM from Limerick would undermine what has been developing and working really well, I hope RTÉ can find a way not to do that. Lyric FM is a signal, a presence, in Limerick. I know it has studios in other regional technical colleges, RTCs, and that may be fine where it did not have a presence previously, but the removal of Lyric FM would be seen as a reduction. I will not speak for the people in Lyric FM - they will be more than able to represent themselves - but I will speak for the people I represent, who see the RTÉ brand within the city of Limerick as speaking to the entire mid-west. It is important that it be maintained.

I think it was in the Committee of Public Accounts that Ms Forbes previously talked about changing RTÉ's policies on the engagement of freelance contractors. Where has RTÉ got on that, and what are the cost implications? Will RTÉ save money or will it cost it more money to do that? Ms Forbes also indicated the cutting of content in RTÉ's cost savings and the reduction of numbers. We all know people who work here, in RTÉ and around Leinster House. People say to me there is very significant pressure in some areas within Ms Forbes's organisation - perhaps Ms Cusack will know more than anyone about this - in that there is not enough staff at certain times to deal with sick leave, maternity leave and so on. It seems to me that reducing numbers could put very significant pressures on RTÉ's capacity to continue its current output. There is that issue, what happened in Limerick and the way in which everything was leaked. How does Ms Forbes view morale within the organisation at present? Could she speak to that?