Pringle slams Government over RTÉ funding plans
- Updated: 1st August 2024
Independent TD for Donegal, Thomas Pringle, has criticised the Government decision to retain the TV licence fee, saying the funding model announced last week is not the “new, sustainable and fair” measure that Government promised.
Deputy Pringle said: “There is nothing fair about the TV licence, which imposes another burden on people who are struggling. Yet Government made the decision to maintain this regressive charge in the face of recommendations to scrap the TV licence from a commission established by Government and an Oireachtas committee.
“I have called for the TV licence to be scrapped, with public service media funded through general taxation and increased taxation on big corporations, and with proper safeguards to ensure the independence of media as well. I also don’t believe there should be advertising on State media. Another advantage there would be to push advertisers to commercial outlets across the country, and spread that potential revenue to more outlets. There are commercial and local outlets producing important work in the public interest, and that should be supported.
“I think that’s achievable and doable.
“Two years ago, the Future of Media Commission recommended the abolition of the TV licence and replacing it with a public funding model. Earlier this year, the Joint Committee on Tourism, Culture, Arts, Sport and Media recommended scrapping the TV licence fee and called for public service broadcasting to be funded through Exchequer funding, in a fund managed by Coimisiún na Meán.
“The only ones who don’t want to scrap the anachronistic and regressive TV licence fee is this government. Government committed to the ‘introduction of a new, sustainable and fair funding model during its term of office.’
“Continued reliance on the TV licence fee is not fair or new. It is a continued hardship for people across the country who live paycheck to paycheck.
“There is also a significant shortfall between the amount of funding that RTÉ said it needed for the next three years, and the amount of funding that Government has approved for that time. This shortfall cannot be addressed through redundancies or any measures that would threaten the service.
“Public service media provide an invaluable public service. People must have a place to go for factual and unbiased information. This was an opportunity for Government to think more broadly about how best to support public service media and the work of commercial, local and community providers as well as RTÉ and TG4.
“Government chose not to go this way. Instead, they have kicked the can down the road until the next crisis,” he said.
