Eamon Ryan (Dublin South, Green Party)

I am far more in agreement with Deputy McManus than Deputy Coveney on this issue. Amendment No. 108 contains the crucial word "may". I did not use the word "should" and nor would I because my preference is not to have to rely on advertising. The change of heart comes not only from Deputy Coveney's eloquence on Committee Stage but also from the realisation that we live in economic times where it may be difficult for the Exchequer to front the entire cost of such a channel.

My intent is still very much that this channel would have a niche outlook and that in the middle of the day it would show a film of interest to certain schools and at certain times in the evening it would show a Polish or Chinese film that would be of interest to particular communities. As I see it, the Irish films would be the blockbusters and at prime-time the channel would show a good Irish film, of which there are many, which would develop a large Irish audience. Irish people like watching Irish content. The films we have State funded and stored up over many years would bring in huge audiences. The term "niche" does not always mean a small audience. One can have a mix.

The technology available in studios today to knit this together means it can be done very cheaply. I commend the Irish Film Board and James Morris in particular for his vision on this project and the way it can be done to a high quality with a very low budget. Archive and international material is available at a relatively low cost. The Irish Board Film is satisfied that it can clear copyright issues for most Irish movies in terms of the rights of RTE and others that may exist. Everything is in place to make this happen. It is running into an economic storm which will make it more difficult to get it up and running. I want to include the possibility of advertising as one of the revenue streams if it helps us in any way to speed up the delivery of the channel.

The intent remains as it was at the outset. It is to allow for innovative and different television which can use much archive material without huge expense. Primarily, it will not be an advertising channel. It is there only as a provision that may assist us to get it off the ground. It will get off the ground because as an idea its time has come. The technology is available to us. I look forward to us getting on with doing it.

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