Deirdre Clune (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)

I am delighted to have the opportunity to speak on the Broadcasting Bill 2008, which is welcome. One of the primary objectives, which I hope will be delivered, is the establishment of the new broadcasting authority of Ireland, a development that has been mooted for some time. It is great the Bill makes provision for it to happen. The broadcasting authority of Ireland will in future perform the functions of the Broadcasting Commission of Ireland and the Broadcasting Complaints Commission. It will also bring RTE and TG4 under its remit. At present RTE and TG4 are self-regulating and it is good to have one authority regulating and overseeing the functions of broadcasting. It is a very positive move that has been welcomed across the board. As previous speakers from my party have said, we would welcome the Minister's recognition that not all appointments to the board would be done politically by the Minister without consultation. He has made some moves in this regard to ensure the Oireachtas committee will have an overseeing role in appointing members to the board of the BAI. The Bill provides that five members will be appointed by the Government who will be nominated, while four will be recommended by the Oireachtas committee. Fine Gael has a different view of how State appointments should be made. This week we have published a Bill outlining how this should be done, indicating that all ministerial appointments to State bodies should be put before the relevant committee. I heard Deputy O'Flynn discussing this point and he used the word "grilling". I do not believe it is intended that any potential member of a board will be grilled. Individual candidates will certainly be put through their paces and questioned as regards their credentials. A position such as this, a member of the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland, must be considered very important and individual candidates should be willing to promote themselves and justify their position. Certainly, the word "grilling" does not come to mind. It should be seen as an opportunity for them to promote themselves and justify their proposed appointment in the public domain. It will be a State board sponsored and supported by the taxpayer. We shall be tabling an amendment to this effect on Committee Stage and there will be an opportunity to tease matters out and hear the Minister's views. I have read his comments in the Seanad debate on the matter.

I welcome the fact that if a broadcaster infringes the terms of the licence or the requirements of the code, that fines can be put in place, up to a maximum of €250,000. It is good that fines are being graduated to that high level. This is a positive step. Before this, there was no recourse other than to withdraw the licence but nobody wanted to avail of that nuclear option. Introducing the system of fines is a very positive move. I also welcome the fact that there will be a speedy right of reply. Within 15 days somebody can have a right of reply — at present it can take a long time to obtain redress if somebody believes his or rights have been infringed, In today's news I see that the Broadcasting Commission of Ireland upheld a complaint from a member of the public regarding an item on the Gerry Ryan show in July. The complaint was upheld, but it has taken almost three months to do so. When this legislation is in place, it will take just 15 days. Certainly, this is contentious and there has been some reaction in the media, but having a right of reply within 15 days is a positive step.

I want to address the issue of advertising. The Minister has included a provision in the Bill, whereby the advertising of junk food will be banned or restricted. I am not sure about this and know it is to be teased out on Committee Stage. On the face of it, this is a good idea. While I support the principle, the devil will be in the detail on the question of what constitutes junk food. One person's idea of junk food may be completely different from another's and I am sure those who produce foods which look exciting on the supermarket shelf or television will have something to say about this because many of us have been the subject of correspondence on the matter.

I was interested in a survey conducted by the Consumer Association of Ireland of children's breakfast cereals. Coco Pops contained 9% fat in Ireland, but only 1.3% in Australia and New Zealand — same box, same brand, same packaging. Rice Krispies had 13% sugar content here but only 10% in other countries. The fat levels were 1.3% here but only 0.7% in the USA, Australia and New Zealand. The figures were defended by the Irish Breakfast Cereals Association and its comments should be noted as regards the claim that there was a nutrition factor in its members' cereals. However, figures such as these suggest producers of such products might be forced to act, if we look at advertising as it is geared towards children. They could be permitted to advertise if they keep their sugar, fat and salt levels down. Perhaps there is a mechanism for addressing the advertising factor because it needs to be done on the basis of these figures. Producers of such products should be forced to act because we are living in an era where children and adults exercise less and less. It is an era of fatty and easy food, of which we need to be conscious.

I will be interested to hear the debate on Committee Stage as regards the advertising of religious products. There must be a mechanism around this. Instead of banning all advertisements for cribs at Christmas, for example, First Holy Communion and confirmation gifts etc., we must be able to allow such advertising provided it does not exceed certain boundaries. It is ludicrous that all advertising should be banned on the threat of opening the floodgates to extremism. I do not believe that is in anybody's interest, nor does the general public want it. Certainly, this can be a dangerous area, but it can be looked at and regulated. It is another case of not throwing the baby out with the bathwater.

On the whole, the most positive step in the Bill is the establishing of the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland, bringing the regulation of the broadcasting sector under one body. I look forward to Committee Stage developments and enactment of the Bill.

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