Mr. Vincent Crowley:

On behalf of the national newspapers, I thank the members of the committee for what has been a very supportive engagement today. There is a good appreciation of the challenges that local and national newspapers face. National newspapers are just as much part of the fabric of the country as local newspapers are. We all relate to our local newspapers. However, if we woke up and The Irish Timesor the Business Post was gone, we would be equally concerned and bereft. I accept the local feeling around the table, but let us not forget about the national titles. If people do not have the Irish Independent, The Irish Timesand the Business Post, there will be a gap and they will miss it.

We need to be given the time and space now to address the digital challenge. We are doing that, and we are investing in it. The Government needs to look at what the digital giants are doing. Since they are providing such employment in the country, there is reluctance to disturb them too much. We have a chance to level the playing field as is being done in Australia, the UK and France. It is instructive to look at what is being done in those countries. It is not about neutering what they are doing but about reallocating some of the gains they get from us back to us to enable us to invest in journalism and what we need to be doing digitally.

As Mr. Mulrennan said, we need immediate short-term support. It is the continuation of that advertising support in newspapers now with the vaccine coming through. It will be very important. A big hearts and minds job will need to be done in getting people to accept the vaccine's safety and the need take it. Newspapers are a great medium for doing that because they are trusted. If it is a slightly complex message, it can be set out clearly giving people time to absorb it.