William Aird (Laois, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context

479. To ask the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment the way in which he will support local and regional journalism in counties such as Laois, where local newspapers, media outlets and radio stations are vital but financially vulnerable; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [34381/25]

Patrick O'Donovan (Limerick County, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context

Local and regional journalism plays a vital role in the provision of valuable public service content to the Irish public. The Future of Media Commission, in examining the challenges faced by the media sector, made a number of recommendations to counter these challenges and to support the provision of public service content.

One recommendation was for 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, and that new schemes under this Fund should be put in place on a platform neutral basis, with television, print and radio all eligible for funding.

In this regard, €5.7m funding was awarded to the wider media sector through the Local Democracy and Courts Reporting pilot schemes in February of this year throughout the country, including County Laois.

These Schemes were designed in such a way as to achieve a fair distribution of funding among local and regional news media, in order to support publications all around the country and to prevent the funding being disproportionately awarded to a small number of organisations or to those in a limited number of Local Authority areas.

A further €10m was secured in Budget 2025 to support the next iteration of these Schemes and to develop two further schemes, the Digital Transformation Scheme and the News Reporting Scheme.

It is anticipated that the Digital Transformation Scheme will be launched later this year and will assist media organisations in the continued provision of public service content which serves to inform the public, to maintain integrity of information and to preserve trust.

The key objective of the Scheme will be to support the continued viability of public service content providers in a more digital and globalised media landscape, which I believe will be particularly beneficial to local and regional media organisations.

As well as incentivising investment in technology and services by public service content providers, accelerating the development of sustainable business models in the sector, the Scheme will also aim to provide support for the appropriate training and up-skilling of existing staff within the sector.

Furthermore, the News Reporting Scheme will support the continued production of news by our local and regional media, who are among the most trusted sources of information in the national media landscape. The Scheme is currently under development by Coimisiún na Meán and it is expected that it will be put in place this year.

A further €6m was secured in Budget 2025 to support news and current affairs reporting by commercial independent broadcasters, including local and regional services. This is aligned with the Programme for Government commitment to support the provision of objective news and current affairs content. As independent regulator for broadcasters, Coimisiún na Meán will lead the design and administration of the supports for news and current affairs on independent broadcasting services. As part of this process, Coimisiún na Meán will conduct stakeholder consultation to ensure that the views of the wider media sector, including independent radio stations, are taken into account in the development of the new measures.

The aforementioned measures are in addition to the Sound and Vision Scheme operated by Coimisiún na Meán, which provides ongoing support for the production of high quality public service content on TV and radio. €1.7m of funding under this scheme was allocated to commercial radio in 2024.

I believe it is critical to preserve and protect our national, local and regional journalism, which play an essential role in our diverse and thriving media sector and to support their invaluable contribution to our public discourse and our democracy, ensuring that trustworthy sources of news are maintained and supported.

As Minister, I am acutely aware of the challenges facing our local and regional media organisations and my officials will continue to engage with the sector on supporting the sector in delivering vital public service content.

Maeve O'Connell (Dublin Rathdown, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context

480. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government to confirm whether the new DMURS Advice Note 7 will contain measures to accommodate people with visual impairments and guide dog users. [34430/25]