Ms Birch Hamilton:

Returning to the point the Deputy made about urgency, never before in the history of the audiovisual industry have we had so much change and disruption. The committee members will be aware of this themselves. New platforms, such as Disney Plus, are popping up and the box office is changing radically as a result. Things are progressing and now is the time for this levy to be introduced, and not in one, two or five years. Silos and structures are being formed now, and we will miss out if we do not get into this area during this pivotal moment in the transformation of the digital landscape. Companies will invest instead in infrastructure in other places in Europe, as they are doing already. Ireland will miss out as a result. We must, therefore, be at the table in this regard and be able to offer something to draw in the extra investment required for us to have a robust future. If we do not do that, I fear we could miss out on the developments under way in this area and the future of our entire broadcasting and audiovisual industry could be at risk. That is why we are recommending the implementation of this levy immediately.