Oireachtas Joint and Select Committees

Tuesday, 17 June 2025

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Arts, Media, Communications, Culture and Sport

General Scheme of the Broadcasting (Amendment) Bill: Discussion (Resumed)

2:00 am

Mr. John Purcell:

We have been consulted but the underpinning since the first meeting has been the additionality, which is a fundamental issue for us. We pointed out since the initial stages that we felt it was entirely inappropriate to have it platform neutral. We think there should be ring-fenced funds for local newspapers, independent radio and so on but those have been non-negotiable in our interactions because they were recommended by the Future of Media Commission. The Future of Media Commission was three, four or five years ago. We think that in today's fast-moving world, those things need to be revisited.