Noel Grealish (Galway West, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I have only a couple of minutes. I compliment Deputy Dooley on putting this motion before the Dáil this morning. I am delighted to support it. I would like to talk about my own radio station in Galway, Radio West. It was formed back in 1989 by Mr. Gerry Rabbitte, who is in the Gallery. Its name was changed to Galway Bay FM in 1993. Many people have spoken about local radio stations but it is important that we speak about the people who are abroad. A lot of my family unfortunately had to emigrate, to the United States in particular. My local hurling club went to two county finals in the early 1990s. We used to do a deal with Galway Bay FM. The people abroad would ring the local radio station, which would be doing commentary. They would gather in a house and put the phone on speaker. There was no such thing as the Internet at that time. That was the local radio station keeping people in touch with what was happening, particularly with regard to sporting games. I believe that people abroad now listen to the local radio stations more than we do at home in Ireland, particularly to hear local news and sports news. One has to compliment the local radio stations on the tremendous sports shows they put on.

Many Deputies have spoken about their own local radio stations. They broadcast local news, the death notices, sports, and the shows in the morning. Galway Bay FM has Ollie Turner's show in the morning, which has a huge listenership. Many young reporters have started off on the local radio stations before going off to the national stations. I ask that all parties and every Deputy in this House support the motion tabled by Deputy Dooley and Fianna Fáil.

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