Ms Celene Craig:

Yes, in recent years we have focused on specific rounds and it has always been open to the BAI to decide if it wants to focus on a particular round and it has done that in the past. In recent years, and principally because of Covid-19 and additional fundings that had been identified by the Minister, Deputy Martin, she had asked us to target some of the additional funding that she had given us to specific rounds. For example, one was to support the Irish language programming; there was also the live Irish music sector which was very badly hit during the Covid-19 period; and the commercial radio sector was also in there.

As I was saying earlier, we have always been open to this idea of global themes within our current statute, and this is one of the themes we can examine and fund as part of our funding schemes. Climate action and sustainability has been a very principal type of programming under that wider global theme. Any open round of sound and vision can come in with proposals around climate action.

I would also mention that we are currently undertaking a review of the current sound and vision 4 scheme. One of the areas which we have asked the evaluators to look at and assess is the benefit which accrues and whether we are achieving the types of outcomes which we want from these focused rounds, which will include the climate action round.