Mary Butler (Waterford, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the opportunity to speak on the Bill, and I do not doubt Deputy Penrose's passion on this subject. Even though I, personally and as a member of Fianna Fáil, do not favour 40% quotas, it does not mean I do not support Irish music, whether it is listening to the High Kings in the car when driving to Dublin, listening to Christy Moore on the way back down to Waterford or spending the last 15 years of my life going to Irish feiseanna with my daughter and listening to Irish music all day long at such events. I do not accept that just because I do not support the 40% quota it means I do not support and love Irish music and culture.

The Bill provides that sound broadcasting contracts are awarded to applicants on the condition that 40% of the transmission time for music be used for musical compositions that relate to "some distinguishing element of the culture of the island of Ireland". Fianna Fáil very much supports a viable broadcasting sector that reflects the interests of the people and offers quality content for its audiences, but it opposes this Bill on the grounds that it is impractical and will not serve Irish cultural producers or consumers well. While Fianna Fáil supports Irish cultural production, a quota is not the appropriate means to do so. Instead, we must open dialogue and seek engagement with a broad array of interest groups to find a better solution that will not dampen Irish broadcasting.

Yesterday and today, I spoke to the managing director of Waterford Local Radio, WLR FM, a radio station in Waterford that has a huge listenership. He explained that Waterford Local Radio reaches 33% adherence to the contractual obligation as monitored-----

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