Mr. Séamus Dooley:

The local democracy scheme is an interesting one. It has potential, provided that it is not used as a means of displacing jobs or journalism. I would not like to see it in areas such as Tipperary where a newcomer to the market has been pulling titles apart, but there are swathes of the country, urban and rural, that could benefit from it.

Local papers are in rural and urban areas where there is a need for diversity and coverage. Any form of an imaginative scheme that would help, assist and fund the sector is a good idea. That is why we talk about an innovation fund. A scheme could also assist staff and freelancers. There has been a tradition of being sceptical of State intervention or funding of the media but the sound and vision scheme works quite well. There is no reason, if the scheme was properly structured, that it could not be used.