Mr. S?amus Dooley:

I do not accept that. If we look at the function of public service broadcasting, it is to nurture talent. Talent is best nurtured when there is quality employment and quality journalism and when workers are treated with respect and dignity. I am not convinced that in all of the areas where outsourcing may occur, that can be guaranteed in a way that means we can deliver public service broadcasting. In the same way as I would have had concerns when the Abbey Theatre decided to get rid of its workshop, I am concerned that the original remit of RTÉ as a nurturer of talent has been undermined. One could argue that children did not notice any difference when the children's department was closed. However, the decision by the public service broadcaster not to make its own children's programmes, and not to have scripts written in English and Irish by Irish writers, is a failure on its part.