Ciarán Cannon (Galway East, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the witnesses for coming in and sharing their ambition and wisdom with us as to how we can design a landscape for the public consumption of media in the future. I refer to Mr. Farrell's comment regarding people increasingly deciding where, when and how to view output, not only from television stations but also from the broader broadcast and print media. How we fund the production of high-quality content needs to reflect that diversity of choice. In an environment and a world where people are seeking out high-quality, trustworthy content, from news and cultural creative perspectives, I would like to hear how the witnesses would see that undertaking being funded in the future.

Mr. Esslemont spoke about transparency in how the licence fee is allocated, for example. Do we perhaps need to create a central fund from which content producers in the areas of news and creative content can draw sufficient funds, with sufficient standards and scrutiny in place to ensure those moneys are used wisely? We must move away from the monolithic model the witnesses spoke of because there is a need to reflect the diversity of viewership and listenership. Regarding the location and regionality of our future output, we must become ever more focused in generating output specific to the regions. I am interested in hearing the perspectives of Mr. Esslemont and Mr. Farrell on how we could do that.

Well done to Mr. Esslemont and TG4 on what it has done for our diaspora around the world. I have lost count of the number of times I have engaged, both in my previous role as the Minister of State at the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade and my current role, with people around the world who regularly access TG4 content because of its quality and uniquely Irish nature. It is something of which they are proud. I have also spoken with many Irish language speakers around the world who use TG4's material to teach Irish to others, not only Irish people but those in our "affinity diaspora", as we are now describing it, who have a fascination with Ireland and its culture, language and people. How does Mr. Esslemont see that relationship with the diaspora developing in the future?

We have also seen the success of the Atlantic economic corridor in driving new tourism activity into communities and regions which may not have had significant tourism activity before. Alongside that, has TG4 thought of the development of what I will call an Atlantic creative corridor? This would involve TG4 taking the opportunity to create high-quality cultural output along that same corridor, from Donegal to Waterford, reflecting the unique nature of that landscape and its people and culture, which, as Mr. Esslemont said, has been passed on for centuries through the generations. Is there something which we can align with that corridor?

In that context, increasing numbers of people have started working from home in the last six months. Interesting groups, such as Grow Remote, are encouraging people to look at remote working options, so we will see a consolidation in the future of thriving and culturally vibrant communities along the west coast. Could TG4 have some role in bringing all that together and creating the kind of output which people want to consume locally, regionally and internationally?