John Halligan (Waterford, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I have seen no submission. The EBI has not received any submission from rights holders calling for levies to be introduced. It has not received any engagement from stakeholders on the matter providing evidence of the harm caused to rights holders by private copying to justify increasing the cost to Irish consumers. While the proposed amendments would force businesses to pay burdensome levies, the Senator might agree it is inevitable that these costs would be passed on to the consumers. This has occurred throughout the EU. It would not be limited to private customers but would cover business consumers. We would be in very serious waters when people purchase material for copying or facilitating, regardless of the use it was intended for. We have examined this closely and have taken opinions from everyone we possibly can. The Senators have met officials to discuss it. We have referred to the very comprehensive report of the committee in 2013 and have received no submissions whatsoever on any of the issues the Senator has spoken of.Based on that again, I ask the Senator to trust us on this and respectfully request that the amendments be withdrawn.