asked the Taoiseach whether his attention has been drawn to a statement of the Minister for Lands at a public meeting in Ballina on the 23rd April as reported in the Press on 30th April to the effect that there was a scheme for the erection of a short-wave radio station, that everybody knows that the present stations are catering well enough for the people; and that the present Government scrapped that squandering; whether he will state if the Minister for Lands was stating the opinions or decisions of the Government; and, if so, whether there has been any alteration in those decisions.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Short-Wave Radio Station.
The particular statements by the Minister for Lands to which the Deputy refers are taken by him out of their context, which was a general statement of the Government's attitude towards the policy of the previous Administration in regard to public expenditure.
The decision not to proceed with the proposed high-power short-wave broadcasting station was taken in the light of a number of considerations including, as was indicated by the Minister for Posts and Telegraphs in a speech on the 10th May, 1948, the fact that there was no certainty that we would be able to secure an allocation of suitable wavelengths and also the need for economy, which was related to the Government's policy of diverting State expenditure, to the maximum extent, to social schemes and productive purposes. That decision remained unaltered on the date of the speech by the Minister for Lands, namely, the 23rd April last.
On the 17th of last month, however, the Government decided that short-wave transmissions to America of an experimental programme should be undertaken as soon as possible. This decision was taken in view of altered circumstances; in the meantime Ireland had obtained a share of short-wave frequencies under the basic plan adopted earlier this year at the short-wave broadcasting conference held at Mexico City, and, secondly, national policy and particularly the more acute need to make the truth about Partition known to the outside world, made the use of short-wave broadcasting more necessary in the public interest than it had been when the original decision was taken in the early part of last year.