With just over a fortnight to go before the Dáil adjourns for the summer break, the Government must make significant decisions, one of which involves devising a funding strategy for the crisis-stricken national broadcaster RTÉ.
In our top story today, we report on RTÉ director general Kevin Bakhurst’s announcement of plans to relocate the production of popular shows like Fair City and the Late Late Show from their traditional Montrose location in Dublin, in an effort to rejuvenate the broadcaster following a significant governance scandal.
RTÉ disclosed on Tuesday plans to utilise a “streamlined site,” producing fewer shows within Dublin and exploring production opportunities outside the capital. A “design and procurement plan” for infrastructure modernisation at Montrose is to be launched next year.
Tax-free allowances for Michael McGrath’s seven children will elevate his EU pay package to a yearly €443,000.
RTÉ added that it intends to proceed with previously announced plans to shut four digital radio channels and make 40 job cuts this year. This will be the initial phase of an overarching plan to eliminate 400 jobs in the foreseeable future via voluntary redundancy.
Following the unveiling of RTÉ’s plans, a Government spokesperson confirmed that €20 million in funding has been allocated, while indicating that additional funding is anticipated as the broadcaster rolls out reforms.
However, this funding is merely a temporary solution. The Government must eventually deliberate over the ongoing decline in sales of the €160 TV licence, a key source of funding for public service broadcasting, particularly in light of the controversies that plagued RTÉ recently.
Ongoing discussions are being held among the coalition parties regarding the future funding of public service broadcasting. The Government has committed to settling the matter by the summer recess.
Catherine Martin and her Green Party favour replacing the licence fee with direct government funding. However, this approach has faced resistance from Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael.
Tánaiste Micheál Martin warned that full Government funding could potentially lead to undue governmental influence over Irish media, something he deemed unhealthy. Meanwhile, outgoing Minister for Finance Michael McGrath voiced concerns that such a funding model may result in RTÉ’s funds directly competing against essential services such as healthcare and education.
The perspectives of Jack Chambers, the successor to the previous role, are anticipated with interest given his crucial role in making the final judgement, and are likely to align with the opinions of Mr Martin and Mr McGrath. In the past, Taoiseach Simon Harris suggested a potential reform to the TV licence-collection system, which could result in lower fees for households. Also, Ms Martin, the current incumbent, alarmed about the potential threats of a hybrid model which could potentially combine reduced licence fee collected by Revenue with additional exchequer funding, describing it as combining the drawbacks of both systems. The varied opinions expressed by diverse senior Government officials indicate complex discussions to come in the upcoming two weeks.
Yesterday there was widespread fury in the Dáil chamber over the suspended sentence given to soldier Cathal Crotty for assault on Natasha O’Brien. Ms O’Brien, present in the public gallery, earned a standing ovation from TDs.
Following the promotion of Jack Chambers to the position of Minister for Finance, numerous Fianna Fáil TDs have expressed interest in advancing their political careers as Jennifer Bray reports there’s a vacant ‘super-junior’ seat in the Cabinet. This seat is expected to be filled by an existing Minister of State, and with this shift, a backbencher will likely be appointed to fill in the resultant vacancy.
As part of today’s agenda, TDs have an opportunity from 9.10 am to bring up Topical Issues in the Dáil. There will be a motion on primary school funding from a group of Independent TDs, which is set to be debated from 9.58 am. The Leaders’ Questions are scheduled for noon. Government Business from 1.49 pm will include statements ahead of this week’s European Council Meeting.
The Child Care (Amendment) Bill 2024 and the 2024 Digital Services (Levy) Bill are expected to evoke a series of discussions. The routine voting process in the Dáil is slated to begin at 10.41pm. The Seanad plans to revive the debate on the Health (Assisted Human Reproduction) Bill 2022 from 1.15pm onwards.
At 9.30am, a meeting is scheduled with Alone, a charity organisation, to address older people’s health requirements before the Health Committee. There will be multiple points on the agenda.
Additionally, the Media Committee plans to engage in conversations about the government’s reaction to online fiction and media/digital comprehension, including social media and fraudulent news. This meeting will start at 1.30pm. Government officials, Garda representatives, and Media Commission representatives will be in attendance.
Members of the Agriculture Committee, including TDs and Senators, will get the chance to question Horse Racing Ireland and Horse Sport Ireland about the care and handling of horses. This is in the aftermath of a recent examination by RTÉ on the slaughter of horses at the only approved horse slaughterhouse in the country.
For further details on Dáil, Seanad, and Committee schedules refer to the following links (here, here and here).