Alice-Mary Higgins (Independent) | Oireachtas source

The amendment is comprehensive and I will speak to two or three of its components. I am hopeful that either the Minister will accept this amendment or will bring some of its components forward on Report Stage.

The reason this amendment is important is because the section in which the amendment may be inserted is the media service code section. At the moment we have the very good values, which I think many of us across the House agreed on and sought to strengthen under the powers and functions section of the legislation in terms of the different principles that were addressed.

In the media service code section there is a second positive piece. There is a protection role and the promotion or participation directive. So the audiovisual, AV, directive has protective functions, and participative, positive and proactive measures that it seeks to do to promote participation in cultural life and so forth. As things stand, under section 46N, the focus by it nature, and I presume that is where the concern goes, is very much on the protective measures. So that is protection of the interests of the audiences and provisions against those issues of concern. We have all highlighted the different kinds of issues.

It is nice that amendment No. 112 seeks to show that media service codes can be positive tools that promote positive social goals. Again, that is a power under the AV directive. This is not solely about commercial regulation. The AV directive mandates that there is inclusion and participation, which are good public goals. This is an example of what could be done in terms of the positive potential within media service codes so that they do not just become a constraint, something forbidden, prohibitive, protective rules or close things down, which is necessary in many ways. The codes also have a positive role, can mandate public duty, and reflect equality and human rights. These are a number of practical proposals that could reference and give effect to the second mandate that comes from the AV directive.

Senator Sherlock elaborated very well so I shall not do so. I was a member of the National Women's Council of Ireland around the time that some of the research was done, which the Senator referenced. I wish to make one textual point and I reserve the right to table an amendment on this on Report Stage. The research was very interesting, not simply in terms of the quantity of time given to male voices versus female voices on radio stations and in broadcasting, but also the nature of that time. For example, the research showed that women were asked to talk about their experiences and men were asked to explain what happened. I mean that the first person experience was sometimes used for women and then a male expert was brought in to explain the actual story. That is another example of why women were not being given the same quality of time. Perhaps there is scope to address a couple of these issues not just through section 46N, as suggested here, but through section 46L, which is the section on news and current affairs. That space should be considered. I, therefore, make the constructive suggestion that a gender equality provision is inserted in that section.

On quotas, these are hard quotas. The question of giving the power at least to, potentially, set quotas is something that could and should be considered. These quotas would represent a leap forward in terms of the broadcast of musical compositions.

On promotion, there is a mandate for l'exception culturelleor cultural participation and cultural representation. That is one of the goals of the AV directive. The spirit of section (ba)(iii) in the amendment is important and its percentages would be great. If the Minister does not feel inclined to accept those specific percentages then the potential for the commission to set quotas would be constructive and represent a hard tool. Let me explain why I think a hard tool is needed.It was referenced that certain radio stations are doing better than others. One of the reasons that some radio stations are doing better than others is because from time to time, radio stations have to go and seek licences again, so they are conscious that they are effectively having to seek airspace, be it digital or otherwise, but there is that question of being given bandwidth and there is a dynamic whereby the State gives licences. However, the broadcasters regulated by this legislation do not have that tool of constraint. The State does not have that lever to exercise in relation to the issuing of licences, so in that context it would be good if there was some form of hard tool that might be given to the commission which it could choose to exercise if it so wished in respect of a media service code.