Timmy Dooley (Clare, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

It seems the Minister raised the issue of spectrum auction. Will he confirm to the House that the criteria around the auctioning of the spectrum will concentrate more on the geographic spread rather than on the amount of money that can be generated for the State coffers? The Minister is well aware that, notwithstanding what different mobile companies advertise in terms of their coverage, the bulk of their service, as a result of previous auctions, concentrates on population. That is because the criteria were in the past based around the return to the State. We have seen the folly of that in terms of the poor coverage in many less densely populated areas but yet it is vitally important to provide cover to ensure access to emergency services etc. Will he confirm to the House that at last he has understood the necessity to look at the geographic spread rather than following the population dispersal?

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