Pat Rabbitte (Dublin South West, Labour)

Yes, my Department is represented on the committee. The report merits the kind of study it is receiving. Various people working in this broader area have made the suggestion that Ireland has a certain competitive advantage which we should exploit in the sense of creating wealth and jobs and in terms of our international reputation. Having said what I said about the Sound and Vision fund, I do not wish to constrain those possibilities in any way. It seems to me that as the Deputy has said, the Sound and Vision fund at the moment has a purpose. It is a fund which is well used and those who have access to it at the moment would be of the view they could not really manage if they did not have access to the Sound and Vision fund.

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