Mr. Ronan McManamy:

I will respond to what Deputy Mythen said about the funding of the radio sector. It is thrown back at us that we have access to Sound and Vision funding. Some 7% of the television licence goes into a fund we can apply for, as can television, RTÉ and independent producers. By way of example, €6.4 million was allocated in the round that came out last March and local radio stations got €150,000, or 2%.

Part of the reason for that is we did not apply for it because the admin involved in getting a small amount of €2,000 or €3,000 is not worth it. Most of the television companies come in and take funds out of that and the allocation is €200,000, €300,000 or €400,000. The scheme does not work for us.

Second, in terms of the scheme, we work in a live environment, so we will deal with what is topical and what is happening here and now. That scheme is designed for television stations where they plan in the spring what they will do in the autumn. Therefore, again, it does not work for us.

A key issue as well is we cannot apply for anything to do with current programming. There is an additionality clause there. Because we developed significant public service elements across the years, that is now being thrown back in our face. We cannot get things for that, but we can get funding for additions. It as if there is a hole in your house and you are getting grants for new carpets and curtains.