Brendan Ryan (Labour)

I also welcome the Minister to the House to introduce this Bill. The Labour Party broadly supports it, but we will table amendments to it on Committee Stage.

The provision that the appointment of some members of the new broadcasting authority will be made by the Minister with advice from the relevant Oireachtas committee is to be welcomed. The Minister might expand on how this will work and the mechanics of it when we resume the debate on the Bill next week. Will he retain any veto in that respect? I would be interested to hear his comments on that.

It is disappointing that the broadcasting fund, to which Senator O'Reilly referred, has not been changed and that only 5% of the revenue from the television licence fee will be allowed for the independent sector. We had hoped there would be an increase in the fund to encourage and support the independent production sector. There had been strong indications and considerable speculation that the fund would be increased and, therefore, it is disappointing it has not been. We may table amendments in this respect.

Given that the Minister has expressed strong support for TG4, would it not have been possible to have given the station long-term funding as opposed to the current approach of funding on a year-to-year basis? Will the Minister consider that matter? We may table an amendment to that effect.

We face a changeover to digital television in 2009, the most immediate effect of which will be the loss of service from Britain to analogue television users, especially on the east coast. We are disappointed there is nothing in the Bill to assist the viewers who will be affected. I would like the Minister to comment on that.

One of the main issues on which I wish to focus is the code of advertising targeted at children. The Minister has provided for a code to control the advertising of food targeted at children in an effort to tackle obesity. I wish to focus on this issue. The provision in this respect is wishy-washy and does not go far enough to deliver the type of change that is needed to protect children. It should go beyond prohibiting the advertising of junk food and cover other forms of advertising targeted at and focused on children. It is inappropriate for advertisers to target children, particularly in terms of fast food which may possibly be injurious to their well-being. Children are entitled to a childhood free from commercial pressures.

We should ensure as legislators that RTE and other Irish broadcasters provide a number of periods of children's programming during the day which are advert free, as happens in other jurisdictions. We know that advertising targeted at children works. It is considered to be lucrative in the advertising industry. Practically all the top advertising agencies today have introduced children's divisions with the obvious objective of targeting this group of citizens. Children under the age of 12 may not be able to recognise traditional advertising as opposed to routine programming or recognise its sales promoting nature.