Victor Boyhan (Independent)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister of State to the House to take these Commencement matters. I know this is not a matter directly related to his Ministry but it relates to the Minister, Deputy Catherine Martin, who is our Minister for arts, culture and media. The matter is to ask the Minister for arts, culture and media to make a statement on her new funding proposals for newspapers, local radio stations and other radio stations, for that matter, to facilitate the coverage of local authorities and the Courts Service. Access to information and communication about both is critically important, particularly in the regions and in local communities. New media funding is expected to support the reporting of the courts and the local authorities. The Minister has indicated that, while it may be on an interim basis, newspapers and radio stations are set to receive this new funding to facilitate coverage of the courts, local authorities and their activities. That is an initiative which I welcome and support. I know the Minister is fully committed to it.

I recognise and support the significant contribution of local media outlets, whether local radio or other local, provincial and regional media, which are also important. We benefit in these Houses, with our magnificent Library beneath this Chamber, where all the provincial, local and regional papers come in every week. We currently have an opportunity to read and study them. Long may that continue. This medium of communication, whether local radio or local newspapers, is important because it communicates facts and engages people in political, social and economic life, which is important at a time of misinformation and disinformation. We rely heavily on the strong level of integrity of most of the brands of our media in this country. We are fortunate and need to recognise that as being the case. Local media are important. They are a conduit for connecting our citizens and community. It is a matter of knowledge and power, as the Minister of State and I know.

When the Minister, Deputy Martin, was in New York, she confirmed that funding for this initiative could come next year on an interim basis before a new long-term strategy for RTÉ and other entities in public service media comes into effect. I understand the Government decided last year, pending an analysis of the alternatives, not to accept the key recommendation of the Future of Media Commission that public service media should be funded from central Exchequer funds rather than the current system of TV licensing. I also note that the Minister said that all options should still be kept on the table because she wants to explore all options and circumstances. The Future of Media Commission made six recommendations about schemes, such as court reporting and the local democracy and digital transformation that could be supported by this new media fund.

I commend the Minister, the Minister of State and the Government on the engagement with the industry about local democracy and court reporting as a starting point. That should proceed as quickly as possible. I also commend the Minister, Deputy Martin, on securing the €6 million in funding in the budget to get the scheme under way. Unfortunately, a new, long-term, sustainable funding model ultimately needs to be put in place to support media coverage and its independence.

Representatives of NewsBrands Ireland came to the House and met Members in the audiovisual room recently. They made a strong case for support of the media, particularly local media, but also regional and provincial media. I informed NewsBrands that this Commencement matter was being taken and I understand the company is listening in today. We need to continue to build strong relationships with the media. They are not all about making money. The media have an important role in communicating facts, as I said, at a time when there is much misinformation and disinformation. If we do not support our local media outlets, they will suffer and we will lose them. That would be terrible in a democracy like ours.

Ossian Smyth (Dún Laoghaire, Green Party)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

I thank Senator Boyhan for raising this matter. Print media and radio play an essential role in sharing reliable and relevant news and bringing communities together. The wider media sector in Ireland, which is a vital element of our democracy and society as a whole, is undergoing fundamental change. This is in part due to the increased digitalisation of news and media content generally and the associated decline in advertising revenue as a consequence.

The report of the Future of Media Commission examined the challenges facing the media sector, including print and radio, and the consequent impact on the provision of public service content. The report made a number of recommendations to counter these challenges and support the provision of public service content. The report of the Future of Media Commission was considered by Government in July last year. The Government decided to accept 49 of 50 of its recommendations.

One recommendation made by the Future of Media Commission was for the establishment of a new media fund to provide support for the provision of public service content by the wider media and journalism sector at local, regional and national levels, on a platform neutral basis. The media fund is being established on an administrative basis, with the local democracy and courts reporting schemes being prioritised for implementation by Coimisiún na Meán, with €6 million allocated in budget 2024 for this purpose. The local democracy reporting and courts reporting schemes will operate as contestable award schemes on a platform neutral basis, under which Coimisiún na Meán will award successful applicants with funding to support the production of public service content over a fixed period through the deployment of additional journalistic resources.

The core focus of the local democracy reporting scheme will be to provide comprehensive coverage of the proceedings of local authorities and associated committees. In addition, it is intended that local democracy reporters will carry out other tasks outside of providing reports of meetings, including reporting on the functions and activities of local authorities, reviewing publications and records to identify stories of public interest, and to report on other matters relevant to local democracy which are in the public interest.

The overall purpose of the courts reporting scheme will be to fund comprehensive, professional and publicly accessible reports of court proceedings at a District Court and Circuit Court level.The fewer cases that are reported, the less aware the public is of the rule of law and the less informed they are as to whether the administration of justice is functioning as it should be.

Given the high-level design of both schemes, it is considered that they may constitute state aid to economic operators in the news and current affairs market. Accordingly, the schemes may require a full state aid notification to, and the approval of, the European Commission. The pre-notification form for the media fund schemes was received by the European Commission on 6 September 2023. It is expected that the pre-notification process will take a number of months, following which a formal state aid notification, if required, will be submitted to the European Commission. Following state aid approval, Coimisiún na Meán will be in a position to implement the schemes.

Officials in the Department of the Minister, Deputy Martin, have consulted extensively with members of the Future of Media Commission stakeholder consultative forum, which includes representatives from across the media sector, throughout the year as part of the high-level policy development process for the schemes. Officials will continue to engage with these members and, indeed, with all stakeholders to keep them informed of developments on this matter.

The detailed design of the schemes, based on the high-level policy principles developed by the Department of the Minister, Deputy Martin, is currently being undertaken by Coimisiún na Meán.

Subject to state aid approval, it is expected that the schemes will begin in 2024. The Department continues to engage with Coimisiún na Meán on the matter, and it is expected that Coimisiún na Meán will progress further stakeholder consultation on the detailed design of the schemes in early 2024.

Victor Boyhan (Independent)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister of State for that detailed response to the Commencement matter. The Minister of State touched on the application being made to the European Commission to review the scheme under the state aid rules. Clearly, that has delayed the establishment of the schemes. I received correspondence from the chief executive of Newsbrand Ireland, Ann Marie Lenihan, flagging this issue and other issues.

I would like the Minister of State to convey my thanks to the Minister, Deputy Martin, in respect of these matters. I ask him to keep us informed. I would like to be kept informed - he might note this - particularly on progress to see this through. It is really important. I welcome the initiative that the courts and local authorities would at least start to see some of this funding put in place because that is a start. We have to keep cutting into this and making progress. The Minister of State might keep the Houses informed. Certainly, I would like to be kept informed, and I formally make that request, on progress in establishing the schemes and the issues around any European Commission state aid difficulties there may be.

Ossian Smyth (Dún Laoghaire, Green Party)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

The principle is that justice should be seen to be done. Sometimes judges refer to the media as the eyes and ears of the court. It is important that what happens in a court is reported. If it is a local issue, it may not be reported nationally, so we may have no visibility of what is going on in our justice system. It is a part of our justice system and, equally, it is important that what happens in a democracy is reported. Again, local democracy may not receive an airing in the national media, so we may have a situation where decisions are made democratically without any input or coverage from the press if the local media have withered away because of the influence of the Internet and so on. That is the goal - to preserve local media. They help to strengthen communities and allow people to see what is going on in their justice and democratic system.

These two schemes that are seeking state aid approval are not the only supports from the Government for local media. The fact that VAT was cut from 9% to 0% has been very beneficial to local newspapers. I am sure they appreciate that. The radio sector continues to be supported on an ongoing basis through the sound and vision scheme administered by Coimisiún na Meán. I understand as well that local newspapers and radio stations are sometimes overlooked in Government advertising campaigns. It is important that if public information is being put out through the national media, the local newspapers are not forgotten in that and the media-buying part of public information campaigns includes local media in order that we can reach people. Not everybody buys a national broadsheet paper or watches the TV news. It is important that we reach everybody around the country and that we are fair in our media buying.