I move that the Bill be now read a Second Time.
The main purpose of the Bill is to provide statutory authority for the payment of grants in respect of net receipts from licence fees to the Broadcasting Authority during the five years ending 31st March, 1970. Section 22 of the Act of 1960 authorised the payment of such grants for the five years ending 31st March, 1965 and the Vote for my Department for 1965-66 makes provision for a grant which was calculated on the assumption that the Oireachtas would wish that the Authority should continue to receive the full net proceeds of broadcasting licence revenue for a further period.
Section 22 of the 1960 Act also provided for the payment of subsidies not exceeding £500,000 in all during the first five years of the Authority's existence. This Bill makes no provision for the payment of a subsidy.
The present opportunity is being availed of to propose some minor amendments which experience has shown to be desirable.
Probably the most noteworthy change is that concerning the name of the Authority. "Radio Telefís Éireann", has been recommended by the Authority on the grounds that a good deal of public confusion exists between "Radio Éireann" and "Telefís Éireann", and that the new title is more appropriate to a body which caters for both sound broadcasting (Radio Éireann) and television broadcasting (Telefís Éireann).
Under section 12 of the Principal Act, officers of the Authority must as a general rule, be selected by means of public competition but exceptionally an officer may be promoted within the organisation. It is now proposed to make a further exception which will permit the Authority to promote a servant to be an officer. As the Authority's servants are not selected by open competition, promotion of servants to officer positions will be by limited competition. This is in line with the practice in the Civil Service.
Section 5 of the Bill proposes three minor changes in the functions of the Authority. The first two remove a certain amount of overlapping between paragraphs (h) and (k) of subsection (2) of section 16 of the Principal Act and clarify the Authority's position in regard to its business dealings with other broadcasting organisations. The third specifically authorises the Authority, subject to the consent of the Minister for Posts and Telegraphs, to act as agent for a Government Department, as it does at present for the Department of Education in regard to Telefís Scoile.
Section 6 proposes that the Authority's annual accounts shall be audited by the Comptroller and Auditor General. They have in practice always been audited by the C. & A.G. although under section 25 of the Act of 1960 a commercial auditor could have been appointed. In view of the heavy existing and potential investment of State funds in the Authority it is considered that the C. & A.G. should continue to audit the accounts and that this arrangement should be specifically provided for by statute.
I do not think it necessary to comment on the other provisions of the Bill, which are of a routine or noncontroversial nature.
The fact that so few changes are considered necessary in the Principal Act, after more than five years' experience, is a tribute to my predecessor and to all who took part in drafting that Act. There has, of course, already been one amendment of it. Deputies will remember that the Broadcasting Authority (Amendment) Act, 1964, raised the limit of £2 million in section 23 for Exchequer Advances for capital purposes to £3 million.
The Dáil has discussed the Authority's affairs on several occasions during the past few years, and copies of its five annual reports and statements of accounts have been laid before each House of the Oireachtas under sections 25 and 26 of the Principal Act. In the circumstances and as the primary purpose of this Bill is to authorise the payment of grants, I shall confine my remaining remarks to financial matters.
During the debates on the Broadcasting Authority Bill, 1959 serious doubts were expressed about the possibility of providing a worth-while television service in this country without cost to the taxpayer. My predecessor was confident, however, that revenue from licence receipts and advertising fees should enable the Authority to provide a service which would pay its way after an initial period which he estimated as about three years. However, the television service has been a financial success practically from the beginning. The first television transmissions from Kippure took place on 31st December 1961 and 1962-63 was therefore the first full year of operation. The deficit on television for that year was a mere £17,000. This was converted to a surplus of £259,000 in 1963-64, and in 1964-65 the surplus had grown to £539,000.
I already mentioned that the Act of 1960 authorised payment of subsidies not exceeding £500,000 in all during the five years ended 31st March, 1965. These were intended to meet expected deficits on sound broadcasting during the early years of the Authority's existence. The full amount authorised was exhausted during 1963-64. Since then the Authority has had to manage without a subsidy. In 1964-65 the deficit on sound broadcasting was £166,000. When this deficit is set against the surplus of £539,000 on television there was an overall surplus of £373,000 on both services combined in that year. It will be seen from the Authority's report for 1964-65 that, because of increasing costs and stabilisation of receipts from licence fees and advertising revenue, it expects less favourable financial results in future.
The recent substantial surpluses on the television service have assisted the Authority to finance much of its capital expenditure during the past few years from its own resources. In fact it has not sought any advance from the Exchequer since February, 1964. At present its total indebtedness to the State amounts to £2,065,000, made up of £249,000 in respect of property, et cetera, transferred to the Authority on the establishment day, under section 32 of the Principal Act, and £1,816,000 in respect of repayable Exchequer Advances. No part of the extra sum authorised in the Act of 1964 for capital purposes has yet been utilised and £184,000 of the amount provided in the Principal Act is still available. The Authority has incurred, or is already committed to capital expenditure of the order of £3½ million. It envisages that over the years immediately ahead further expenditure of about £2 million will be necessary, including provision for development of the Donnybrook site to cater for sound broadcasting which is still housed in the GPO. Some increase in the present limit of £3 million for repayable Exchequer Advances may be necessary within the next few years but it is considered that the Authority will have reasonably adequate capital for the time being from its own resources and the £1,184,000 still available under the Acts of 1960 and 1964. The Authority is obliged by section 24 of the Principal Act so to conduct its affairs as to secure that at the earliest possible date its revenue becomes sufficient, not merely to meet current expenses, but also to make suitable provision with respect to capital expenditure.
From what I have said, it will be clear that the Authority is not yet in a position to commence repaying its indebtedness to the State. It is, of course, paying interest on its advances from the Exchequer.
Deputies are already aware that the Authority is engaged in providing a national VHF transmitter network. I understand that the first of these transmitters will be going on the air about the end of April, that the others will follow as soon as they are ready and that it is hoped to have all the main transmitters working by next autumn. The new transmitters will generally be welcomed because of the improvement they will effect in sound broadcasting coverage. The VHF service will, however, result in a further increase in the deficit on sound broadcasting, a deficit which will have to be made good out of the Authority's general revenue.
Last February the Authority submitted a comprehensive memorandum setting forth its recommendations for other improvements in the radio service. It was particularly anxious to introduce day long broadcasting as soon as possible. The proposals would have involved a substantial increase in the sound licence fee. I could not support such an increase, particularly in view of the Government's price stabilisation policy. It seemed to me that no new commitments should be taken on which would involve a worsening of the financial position of the radio service and I therefore informed the Authority in July last that I proposed to defer further consideration of the proposals until the present economic difficulties are resolved.
I need hardly say that under this Bill the Authority will continue to have the maximum freedom regarding programmes and matters of day to day administration and that the power of intervention by the Minister or Government will continue to be confined to a small number of matters in which it is important that the public interest should be safeguarded.
There have been criticisms of the programmes on various grounds and from different quarters but this is only to be expected, and is indeed the experience of broadcasting organisations all over the world. It is impossible to please everybody all of the time but, on the whole, I think Telefís Éireann and Radio Éireann have given general satisfaction. I believe the Authority is to be congratulated on its achievements since it was established and I, therefore, confidently recommend this Bill to the House.