Written answers

Wednesday, 2 November 2016

Department of Communications, Energy and Natural Resources

Media Pluralism

Photo of Tommy BroughanTommy Broughan (Dublin Bay North, Independent)
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413. To ask the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources the steps he has taken to address the concerns raised by the recent Centre for Media Pluralism and Media Freedom report on media ownership here; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [32691/16]

Photo of Denis NaughtenDenis Naughten (Roscommon-Galway, Independent)
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The Competition and Consumer Protection Act 2014 gives the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment the responsibility for assessing proposed media mergers, and empowers the Minister to prevent any merger that is deemed likely to be contrary to the public interest in maintaining the plurality of media in the State. There is no retrospective element to this legislation.

While the report referenced in the question puts forward the view that retrospective provision should be inserted in the 2014 Act, attempting to intervene in the operation of a media business when no merger is planned would be difficult and, given that the purpose of the legislation is to safeguard media pluralism, is also likely to be counter-productive.

Applying a retrospective element to the legislation could, effectively, mean empowering a Government Minister to determine the fate of any media organisation at any given time. This would raise a number of difficult questions about preserving the freedom and independence of the press, even before one considers the legal and constitutional complexities associated with retrospective action of this kind.

An important part of the current regime is the requirement on the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland (BAI) to prepare, every three years, a report on the ownership and control arrangements of media businesses in Ireland.  In June of this year, I published the first such report, Report on Ownership and Control of Media Businesses in Ireland 2012-2014.  In this report, which is available on my Department's website, the BAI concludes that there has not been a material reduction in media plurality in the State due to the limited changes in ownership and control in the period 2012-2014.

Furthermore, the international expert group Sustainable Governance Indicators ranked Ireland 9.0/10 in Media Freedomand 8.0/10 in Media Pluralism, noting that Irish media is independent, with a pluralist ownership structure.

In my view, the reforms introduced in the Competition and Consumer Protection Act 2014 have struck the correct balance in this area and are working well and, as a result, I am confident that we have a robust and effective set of measures in place to support and encourage a plural and diverse media.

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