Eamon Ryan (Dublin South, Green Party)

In respect of amendment No. 36, as proposed by Deputy McManus, on the duties of broadcasters under section 39(1)(d), I would argue that the rewording of this paragraph on Committee Stage by the substitution of "causing harm and offence" for "offending against good taste or decency" in effect covers the issues of anti-social behaviour and bullying. Broadcasters would be under a duty not to broadcast something that is likely to cause harm. Subsection 5(6) of the children's advertising code already states that children advertising shall not encourage children to engage in or be portrayed engaging in anti-social behaviour, in particular, bullying, taunting or teasing other children unless the sole purpose of the advertisement is to discourage such behaviour.

This change is also carried through to section 42 in respect of the broadcasting codes to which I have referred. Section 42(2)(f) requires the broadcasting authority to develop a code which ensures that audiences are protected from harmful or offensive material, in particular, that programme material in respect of the portrayal of violence and sexual conduct shall be presented by a broadcaster with due sensitivity to the convictions or feelings of the audience and with due regard to the impact of such programming on the physical, mental or moral development of children.

With regard to the exploitation or commercialisation of children, in amendment No. 23, as already discussed, I have provided that the broadcasting authority of Ireland is obliged, in section 25, to protect the interests of children taking into account the vulnerability of children and childhood to undue commercial exploitation. As such, I believe that these changes address the matters raised in the Deputy's amendment.

With regard to amendment No. 37, I provided a requirement in section 42 that the broadcasting authority of Ireland prepare codes governing the standards and practices to be observed by broadcasters in relation to children - a continuation of one to which I have already referred. Section 42 also provides for the continuation of the existing codes, namely the code on programme standards which was delivered on 10 April 2007, the children's advertising code which was introduced on 1 January 2005 and the general advertising code which was introduced on 10 April 2007. In addition, section 25 now requires the broadcasting authority of Ireland to protect the interests of children taking into account the vulnerability of children and childhood to undue commercial exploitation. These provisions provide a level of protection while recognising the need of broadcasters to finance their operations by means of advertising. Overall, I consider that sections 25 and 42 provide a balanced response to the concerned raised by the Deputy and as such I cannot accept amendment No. 37.

In respect of amendment No. 42, I would argue that the existing text of section 42(2)(f), which provides that the broadcasting authority of Ireland has a code which protects audiences from harmful material, in particular, material in respect of the portrayal of violence and sexual conduct, encompasses the issues raised by the Deputy and as such I do not propose to accept the amendment.

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