Results 10,841-10,860 of 10,962 for speaker:Patrick O'Donovan

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Arts, Media, Communications, Culture and Sport: Update on Departmental Priorities and Legislation: Department of Culture, Communications and Sport (2 Jul 2025)

Patrick O'Donovan: I am entirely with the Deputy on this. I have met the European Commission around this and I have asked the European Commission the very blunt and very straight question of what could be more important for us as legislators than the protection of our children online in this space. Procrastination and fudging has gone on at a European level for a long time. Europe is going to have to react...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Arts, Media, Communications, Culture and Sport: Update on Departmental Priorities and Legislation: Department of Culture, Communications and Sport (2 Jul 2025)

Patrick O'Donovan: When the Secretary General became aware of it, he initiated an investigation, which ultimately is the report that most of what we are answering today is based on. On the question of whether I am satisfied, I have replied to Deputy Brennan that this is why I brought in the IPA to do the body of work that it is doing.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Arts, Media, Communications, Culture and Sport: Update on Departmental Priorities and Legislation: Department of Culture, Communications and Sport (2 Jul 2025)

Patrick O'Donovan: It is being done because a transfer of function to the Department has only finished in the past fortnight.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Arts, Media, Communications, Culture and Sport: Update on Departmental Priorities and Legislation: Department of Culture, Communications and Sport (2 Jul 2025)

Patrick O'Donovan: Yes. It is a long way from Nenagh to the University Concert Hall in Limerick or the Lime Tree Theatre. North Tipperary should have a theatre that is capable of hosting events, the same as any other part of the country. The Irish National Opera is coming to Limerick in a couple of weeks. There is no reason that all these events should be all Dublin-centric. At the moment, by virtue of...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Arts, Media, Communications, Culture and Sport: Update on Departmental Priorities and Legislation: Department of Culture, Communications and Sport (2 Jul 2025)

Patrick O'Donovan: We will have an ask in the budget for community-based sports facilities. We will be developing schemes for very basic things like instruments, uniforms, lighting, sound, curtains, all of those sort of things.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Arts, Media, Communications, Culture and Sport: Update on Departmental Priorities and Legislation: Department of Culture, Communications and Sport (2 Jul 2025)

Patrick O'Donovan: I do not understand, what comments have I passed.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Arts, Media, Communications, Culture and Sport: Update on Departmental Priorities and Legislation: Department of Culture, Communications and Sport (2 Jul 2025)

Patrick O'Donovan: I do not know how the Deputy could have deduced that from what I said. I did not say that at all. If that is the version he wants to take from what I said, I cannot help that. What I did say is that I will await publication of the Professor Brennan's report. I have no problem coming back to the committee after the fact, but if the Deputy has deduced that from my statement, his powers are...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Arts, Media, Communications, Culture and Sport: Update on Departmental Priorities and Legislation: Department of Culture, Communications and Sport (2 Jul 2025)

Patrick O'Donovan: I answered that already. It was a second contract and a new contract. I felt it was more appropriate that I offer a contract, which ultimately was refused, that would coincide around the completion time of Niamh Brennan's report. At that stage, if another person or the existing person wished to apply for a position the board made available, it was entirely at their own discretion.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Arts, Media, Communications, Culture and Sport: Update on Departmental Priorities and Legislation: Department of Culture, Communications and Sport (2 Jul 2025)

Patrick O'Donovan: I have answered that in the Dáil on a couple of occasions. While there can be cross-party consensus, I ultimately have to make a decision. The timing could not be worse in terms of the introduction of a levy that would impose financial sanction on companies predominantly domiciled in the United States of America. It would not make good sense, to be honest, for people in Gorey to see...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Arts, Media, Communications, Culture and Sport: Update on Departmental Priorities and Legislation: Department of Culture, Communications and Sport (2 Jul 2025)

Patrick O'Donovan: There is evidence in the report circulated that levies would have been passed onto the consumer. Show me a Government levy that has ever been introduced in the past in this country that was not passed onto the consumer. I believe in a lot of things but fairytales are not one. When I met the streamers in the United States, I made it very clear that I am not abolishing the levy, I am...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Arts, Media, Communications, Culture and Sport: Update on Departmental Priorities and Legislation: Department of Culture, Communications and Sport (2 Jul 2025)

Patrick O'Donovan: There are vulnerable adults as well, whom I also included. The definition we have discussed in the Department includes children, vulnerable adults and people with reduced capacity because they are as at risk as children. I can take it up outside the committee with the Senator.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Arts, Media, Communications, Culture and Sport: Update on Departmental Priorities and Legislation: Department of Culture, Communications and Sport (2 Jul 2025)

Patrick O'Donovan: We have no role in GAA+ but we have a role in GAAGo. GAAGo is a joint venture run between the GAA and RTÉ. In order for the sale of an asset owned by RTÉ to proceed, it has to get the consent of the Department and me. In advance of that, it has to get consent and be scrutinised by NewERA. That work is ongoing.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Arts, Media, Communications, Culture and Sport: Update on Departmental Priorities and Legislation: Department of Culture, Communications and Sport (2 Jul 2025)

Patrick O'Donovan: No, GAAGo is owned jointly between the GAA and RTÉ.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Arts, Media, Communications, Culture and Sport: Update on Departmental Priorities and Legislation: Department of Culture, Communications and Sport (2 Jul 2025)

Patrick O'Donovan: GAA+ is not an issue for-----

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Arts, Media, Communications, Culture and Sport: Update on Departmental Priorities and Legislation: Department of Culture, Communications and Sport (2 Jul 2025)

Patrick O'Donovan: It is nothing to do with the Government or RTÉ.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Arts, Media, Communications, Culture and Sport: Update on Departmental Priorities and Legislation: Department of Culture, Communications and Sport (2 Jul 2025)

Patrick O'Donovan: Many of the operators have invested heavily since we engaged with them. Regarding their own resilience, the biggest issue was power outages at critical pieces of infrastructure. They have now been identified and the operators have a lot of work ongoing. This is a liberalised market. We do not own the State's infrastructure - or any of the infrastructure - but we do control the regulation....

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Arts, Media, Communications, Culture and Sport: Update on Departmental Priorities and Legislation: Department of Culture, Communications and Sport (2 Jul 2025)

Patrick O'Donovan: No decision has been made on that but the more cables that come in and out of the island of Ireland and the more different routes there are, the better.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Arts, Media, Communications, Culture and Sport: Update on Departmental Priorities and Legislation: Department of Culture, Communications and Sport (2 Jul 2025)

Patrick O'Donovan: That has not been decided but the more connectivity we get as an island, the better. Considering our nearest neighbour has now left the European Union and 90% of our traffic goes through the United Kingdom, this puts Ireland at a potential risk. There are other routes we could get to, such as Scandinavia, Germany, France and Iberia. These are all being examined.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Arts, Media, Communications, Culture and Sport: Update on Departmental Priorities and Legislation: Department of Culture, Communications and Sport (2 Jul 2025)

Patrick O'Donovan: -----and it does not in any way diminish our connectivity.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Arts, Media, Communications, Culture and Sport: Update on Departmental Priorities and Legislation: Department of Culture, Communications and Sport (2 Jul 2025)

Patrick O'Donovan: I did not say that. I do not think it in any way diminishes our connectivity that everything is currently privately owned and no decision has been made with regard to the future ownership of any cable.