Joe O'Reilly (Fine Gael)

The Bill, however, would be a good start. The Government should prioritise Deputy Leo Varadkar's Bill. Such a move would give confidence to the population that there is a response from the Government. It would also bring down inflation and costs, making us more competitive. I am glad Senator Jim Walsh believes the Fine Gael approach is minimalist and that he would support more cuts to Government charges. I hope Deputy Leo Varadkar's Bill will get unanimous support from all parties in the Houses.

If it had not been for the vigilance of the Oireachtas communications committee and various leading Members, the Government would have been prepared to allow the excessive levy to be imposed without first finding efficiency savings in the authority. There are many other excessive Government charges which also need to be monitored. They drag down the economy, act as a disincentive to economic development, limit competitiveness and stop the economy being lean and fit.

The Minister referred to the role of the sound and vision fund in encouraging indigenous cultural, historical and contemporary broadcasting programmes. The development of the fund was discussed at length during the passage of the Broadcasting Act 2009. It is an excellent development and should be affirmed on every occasion we debate the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland. The preservation of this represents a continuation of the Broadcasting Commission of Ireland and I acknowledge the importance of this.

I refer to the establishment of the right of reply measure. The Minister indicated that work is being carried out to prepare the right of reply provision for the broadcasting sector such that if someone is harmed by a broadcast or damaged in terms of reputation or by an untruth or a distortion of fact in a broadcast, he or she can have the right of reply within reasonable parameters and with reasonable justification. I welcome the inclusion of this provision within the statutory remit for the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland. I welcome its presence in the Broadcasting Act and the fact that moves are afoot to implement it. The provision is crucial, especially to people in our profession. More than anyone, we appreciate the importance of reputation and of not harming one's reputation wrongly and irresponsibly or without proper recourse. It is important the right of reply facility exists. Often, an immediate response is necessary and if the matter is allowed to fester or is delayed due to a cumbersome court procedure, there could be implications for the reputation of the injured party, which could be damaged irrevocably for a long period. It is very difficult to reverse such a development. This aspect of the proposal is very welcome.

The code of practice is very important for our broadcasting sector in general and it is very important that there are high standards and proper practices are in place and fully implemented. I refer to the role of the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland in ensuring compliance within the broadcasting sector to regulations, the code of practice and proper ethical standards and the democratic remit of our broadcasting services. The role in implementing such standards is very important and the capacity to introduce fines where required is important and to be welcomed.

The Broadcasting Authority of Ireland has a very important regulatory function and is very well defined in the Act. The Act was subject to very good scrutiny in the Houses of the Oireachtas. The statutory remit of the board is excellent in its terms of reference and legislative requirements. The budgetary approach, its casual nature, its lack of initial transparency and the fact it was somewhat arbitrary in the beginning was disappointing. We must be prepared to introduce levies at a time of great hardship in the broadcasting sector. Levies were introduced at an arbitrary rate in an arbitrary fashion and this was not acceptable. It is important that the process has been halted. I call on the Minister and colleagues in the House to remain vigilant and very protective of the taxpayers' interest in this sector and sphere.

We must balance good regulatory needs and we agree with the need for a regulatory body. It should be one which sets high standards and promotes the sector but which secures a balance such that there is value for money, a lack of abuse of our taxpayers and a suitable levy level but which also provides suitable services for people in rural and other communities. Any shortcoming in this regard is to the detriment of the well-being of our people. This is the balance which must be struck.