Ms Katherine Licken:

We do not fund radio stations directly in the Department. Usually funding is provided via the sound and vision fund for commercial and community radio stations. That is funded by a proportion, I think 7%, of the licence fee. Where we have found savings in the Department, we have put money into the sound and vision fund to allow for increased funding and different programmes. In sound and vision round 36 in December last year, €670,000 was allocated to 22 community radio projects.

My background is in radio so I am conscious of that ecosystem out there and where it is not out there. These are policy matters and Government has taken a decision to get into a broader policy space in relation to media, not just public service broadcasting but the future of media itself. We got funding in the budget next year for the establishment of the media commission. That commission attracts a lot of attention as being around the regulation of online platforms but it is also about subsuming the BAI and creating a new vision for the sector.

It is the BAI that has the strong regulatory role there. We would be very happy to engage with the BAI on the structure and what stations are out there serving what different areas. I agree that the structure in Dublin is entirely different from the structure in rural areas, where the local radio station dominates and can be really strong in an area. We are very cognisant of that.