Mr. Adrian Lynch:

There are two things about that. First, we need to talk about the creative sector in the context of inside and outside of RTÉ. RTÉ at the end of this period, in five years, will still be one of the biggest creators of television content in Ireland. We probably produce up to 2,000 hours. When it comes to the independent sector, for example, if we look at the average cost of a television drama hour, which Senator Byrne will be familiar with, it is about €1.2 million. We would be putting out a portion of that, but producers are also able to access money from the international market. It means from an audience point of view, for example, if €10 million is put in, with the quality that is delivered at an international level, it is probably €40 million that is returned to the audience.

For Ireland, look at the Future of Media Commission and think about the four things it pointed out that public service media does - independent journalism and bringing the nation together. The fourth one, being a platform as a public service media company, to provide a platform to export Irish culture to the world is a really important thing as well. When we think about the success of the animation companies in Ireland and Oscar nominees like Element Films, that kind of soft power in the world is very important.