Paul Coghlan (Fine Gael)

I, too, welcome the Minister of State, Deputy Seán Power, to the House. I congratulate him on his appointment and wish him well in his new responsibilities. I saw him perform with distinction the other day in Killorglin in my home county where he chaired proceedings and gave his blessing to the joint venture involving Texaco and Bord Gáis. I also compliment the Minister, Deputy Ryan, on his initiative in bringing forward this comprehensive Bill containing 181 sections and running to 165 pages.

Before proceeding I should declare a small interest, of which Senator Cassidy's contribution reminded me when he said that local radio should be local, a view to which I subscribe. I am a founding member of and shareholder in Radio Kerry whose credo is that it is a local station. It operates for every member of every community who wishes to avail of it, either by ringing in to offer a view or whatever. It is not for me to be critical but the print media appear to be invading local radio, although I am sure I do not have to comment on that as the Members are aware of developments in that field.

The main purpose of the Bill is the setting up of the broadcasting authority of Ireland. It will have nine board members, five appointed by the Government and four to be recommended by the relevant Oireachtas committee, and two statutory committees: the contracts awards committee and the compliance committee. I agree with my esteemed and learned colleague, Senator O'Reilly, who spoke on the Bill at length last week, that these proposals are a welcome departure from normal Government practice heretofore in that the Minister has indicated he will consult the relevant Oireachtas committee and take on its view regarding four of the members of the board. We are all in favour of broad consultation and I compliment the Minister on that.

As Senator O'Reilly and others have mentioned, the Bill may need further refinement, so to speak, and those of us on this side of the House would be keen that all the appointments would be open to a questioning and vetting procedure by the committee. Senator O'Reilly and others will have tabled amendments and if I am not anticipating the Minister inaccurately, he will have an open mind regarding some of those matters.

The Bill does not legislate for any form of restrictive measures regarding alcohol advertising. We believe that issue must be addressed and I am sure amendments will be tabled in that regard. Members have spoken continually in the House of the dangers of alcohol advertising and the way it misleads so many of our young people. They have outlined also some of the sad events we are witnessing in towns and villages throughout the country, especially at weekends.

The Bill provides for two new channels to be funded publicly, one of which will be a Houses of the Oireachtas channel to cover proceedings of the Oireachtas, local authorities, implementation bodies, European Union, United Nations and Council of Europe bodies, legislatures in other states and other bodies as the Commission of the Houses of the Oireachtas sees fit. I take it the Houses of the Oireachtas will have discretion regarding the way the channel will be run. Like other speakers I welcome the prospect of this development. Some of us who are members of the joint administration committee were in London recently and saw how well the BBC parliament channel is run. We also looked at Sky television but that is for further consideration on this side of the House.

The establishment of a parliamentary television channel has been under discussion in the Houses of the Oireachtas for some considerable time and there are differing views on the matter. Murray Consultants, which was hired by the Houses, had doubts while Members believed that a parliamentary channel would do much to promote the Houses of the Oireachtas and generate greater interest in the work of public representatives and politics generally. I hold that view, as I am sure do most Members on both sides. There is some evidence to support that view.

The three core issues regarding the development of a parliamentary channel are: who will run the channel, how will a signal be carried and how will the content and production be organised? I gather the Taoiseach is of the view that RTE should run the parliamentary channel from its existing licence fee revenue as it has a public service broadcasting obligation. That would mirror the situation in the United Kingdom where the BBC provides a dedicated digital parliamentary channel from its licence revenue. In its discussions with the joint committee, however, RTE made no commitments in that regard. An alternative to RTE would be to expand the Oireachtas broadcasting unit by buying in the required technology and production expertise. Many of the facilities, such as the cameras and so on, are installed in both Houses and in the committee rooms.

A key question is the way the content and production will be organised. The content and production aspects are interesting because they raise the issue of editorial control, which clearly has major implications in a parliamentary context. Content and production would need careful consideration and once decisions have been taken, clear operational guidelines would have to be devised. There are two main options regarding content and production. First is the transmission of live or pre-recorded items with no added value, and second is the production of value added programmes with commentary and captions. In addition, some journalistic input via analysis and interviews could be considered.

A further issue is getting sufficient content to fill the broadcasting time available. Given the limited sitting hours and long recess periods, other forms of content would be required such as content from the Northern Ireland Assembly, which I am sure Members would welcome, or perhaps some from the UK House of Commons or House of Lords, the Forum on Europe and local authorities.

The development of a parliamentary channel should be preceded by a comprehensive feasibility study that would examine the demand for a channel and assess the various delivery options having regard to financial, technical, policy and organisational considerations. It would need to examine also the role of webcasting and the way the Houses of the Oireachtas can take advantage of the convergence of communications technologies to determine parliamentary proceedings. I am aware from my work as a member of the joint administration committee, as are other Members, that test broadcasts up to the parliamentary recess and the digital platform are in being. Tenders have been issued for a feasibility study. Those are due in mid-June and the study should be completed by October.

Money and resources are key issues if the channel is established, as is the way it is operated. It will have to be operated very professionally because it will be compared with other channels. The Houses of the Oireachtas will have to consider the way we do our business because we will have to have regard for issues such as the sos, recesses and committees going into private session. That will necessitate some change, as I am sure Members can imagine.

It is proposed also that the Irish Film Board set up and operate an Irish film channel to showcase and promote Irish films. That is another welcome development. I would like to hear from the Minister the long-term plans for this channel. Is it envisaged that the number of films broadcast each day will eventually form just three? How was that figure arrived at in the first place? It is hoped that the broadcasting content under the remit of the new authority will reflect the increasing diversity of all aspects of Irish society and cater for a wide range of tastes.

With regard to television licences, it is important the licence fee is affordable to all and takes into account any extra costs for the consumer that will arise from the introduction of digital terrestrial television. The licence fee should also be realistic with respect to how it is applied to premises with more than one receiver. It is also important that the current ratio of home-produced to bought-in programmes broadcast on RTE be maintained, with a view to increasing the number of home-produced material over time. When he spoke to the Joint Committee on Communications in February, the director general of RTE, Mr. Cathal Goan, stated that RTE's broadcasts are currently 45% home-produced with 55% being bought-in programmes.

In the matter of digital terrestrial television an exact date for analog switch-off should be set as soon as possible. Coverage of 100% for DTT must be ensured so that nobody will be adversely affected by the switchover, particularly in the more rural areas of the country. It is important that customers, especially older people, are educated about new technology of this kind that enters the home. The Minister's proposal last week in this House to bring forward provisions in the Bill that would tighten regulations in the area of premium rate services and bring Regtel under the remit of COMREG is welcome. The legislative framework set out in the Broadcasting Bill should be flexible enough to cater for ongoing advances in technology rather than place us in a position where we are forced to play catch-up with other countries.

The initiative for RTE to commission independently made radio programmes is also a very welcome development. This has the potential to become one of the greatest success stories in Irish broadcasting. There is a fear, however, that the Bill does not provide adequate funding for the growth of the independent radio production sector. Section 116 requires RTE to commission specified levels of television and radio programming from the independent production sector. Independent radio is guaranteed only 1.25% of the moneys while independent television has a fully guaranteed 95%. The remaining 3.75% is at the discretion of RTE. This equates to just €500,000 for independent radio productions. Leaving 3.75% at the discretion of RTE is a recipe for ongoing confusion and division. The lion's share of that balance will be absorbed by the larger and more developed independent television sector. A more realistic target for independent radio production should be set and, if necessary, be reached incrementally over a five-year period.

Senators O'Reilly and Boyle are among several who have spoken cogently and in a focused way on this matter. I have no doubt that the Minister of State will bear in mind their amendments on Committee Stage.