David Norris (Independent)

The Danish have had experience in this matter. A newspaper, Politiken, quotes Mr. Paul Samsøe, the head of engineering from the Danish equivalent of BBC Radio — or Danish state radio:

[W]hen asked whether owners of DAB receivers would have to replace their DAB radios in five years time, Paul Samsøe replied: "Yes — just like you'll also have to get a new television set and a new mobile phone." ... Denmark is the only other country in the world apart from the UK where DAB has actually started selling — like in the UK, DAB has started selling only due to heavy advertising — so with someone like Paul Samsøe saying this, and taking into consideration that previously he's been a big supporter of the DAB system, it makes you wonder about whether everybody will have to buy new DAB receivers in the UK as well.

In other words, by taking this system, virtually every radio in the country is rendered obsolete.

The Minister of State has a well-satisfied little smile playing at the corner of his lips. Perhaps he has just been passed the full, complete and definitive technical answer to this, and I look forward with some interest to his reply. Could he confirm something that came not just from me and the Independent benches, but from other colleagues on this side of the House? There was significant interest on the Government side as well. The Government tabled its own amendments, but only after I had tabled those amendments in the first place. The Minister of State might, perhaps, because he is a gracious man, acknowledge that the Seanad has played a significant role in ensuring that not only television images, but also radio broadcast material is made available to the Irish diaspora.