Vol. 486 No. 5
2 Mr. M. Higgins asked the Minister for Arts, Heritage, Gaeltacht and the Islands if she will provide a revised timetable for the legislation in her area which has been promised in the Government programmes; and the reasons for the revision in the timetable from that promised on the record in 1997. [2929/98]
The timetable for legislation in areas within my remit is as set out in the Government's legislative programme, published on 23 January. I am aware the Deputy recently expressed concerns in the House in relation to promised legislation on broadcasting and wildlife, in particular, and I would like to set out clearly the position in both cases.
With regard to broadcasting, in light of my consideration of the issues involved — which have become much more complex than those that obtained when the Deputy was in office and, who, after four and a half years in Government, failed to introduce his long promised major broadcasting legislation — I am working on the basis that it will be necessary to bring forward two Bills on broadcasting. One Bill will have the primary objective of transposing into law article 3A of Directive 97/36/EC, which is designed to ensure continued access for viewers to coverage on free-to-air television of events of major importance to society. The second Bill will be a more comprehensive broadcasting Bill dealing with other critical issues such as the introduction of digital broadcasting, the establishment of Teilifís na Gaeilge as a separate statutory entity and measures to support the local radio sector. I hope to be able to submit my proposals for both Bills to Government later this year.
While a draft of the Wildlife (Amendment) Bill was close to finalisation before the Deputy left office, it was not a final draft. A number of technical issues which had been raised by the parliamentary draftsman's office remained to be resolved. The sections of the Bill relating to the designation of natural heritage areas needed to be revisited, particularly in the context of the level of protection proposed in the draft legislation. In addition, certain sections of the Bill required examination and revision in the light of experience gained from the process of preparing the European Communities (Natural Habitats) Regulations, 1997. A working group in my Department has been working to finalise these outstanding issues with a view to having an updated draft ready for the parliamentary draftsman's office next month. It should be noted that some of the issues involved will have to be agreed in consultation with other Departments.
I have availed of the opportunity to consult with a number of interested parties in regard to the Bill. The purpose of the Wildlife (Amendment) Bill is not to legalise EU directives, as stated by the Deputy in this House on 28 January last. The relevant EU directives — the Birds Directive and the Habitats Directive — are already transposed into Irish law, principally by means of the European Communities (Natural Habitats) Regulations, 1997, which were signed by the Deputy, as the then Minister for Arts, Culture and the Gaeltacht, in February of last year.
I am grateful for the Minister's clarification and assurance that the regulations I signed are still in place. The commitment given by members of her party in different parts of the country would lead one to suspect that matters had changed.
It is true that as Minister I published a Green Paper and what should be called heads of legislation, fócas géar. It is somewhat disingenuous to suggest that digitalisation arose as an issue between June l997 and today. If the broadcasting authority had been established under the heads of the legislation as published, it would have been able to advise on digitalisation and there would be no need to delay the introduction of the broadcasting legislation while considering digitalisation. Article 3A is short and should not have to await the introduction of the broadcasting Bill. When the Minister was in Opposition she and her colleague frequently reminded me that it should not be necessary to wait for the publication of the broadcasting Bill to establish Teilifís na Gaeilge on an autonomous basis.
And provide plenty of money for it.
There is some misunderstanding in all of this. Article 3A of the directive refers to the coverage of sporting events etc on free-to-air television. The Deputy will recall that when I was in Opposition and he was Minister, he took on board my proposals for a Bill I published on behalf of Fianna Fáil providing for free-to-air television to ensure continued access to cultural events, particularly sporting events. That will be a separate Bill. The directive can be examined in the light of the Bill I am putting forward. It will need legislation, but it will not have to wait until the broadcasting Bill is published. I intend to publish it before that Bill.
Matters concerning Teilifís na Gaeilge will be considered under the broadcasting Bill, but they can be dealt with separately if they are ready before that Bill is published. As a former Minister, I am sure the Deputy understands this depends on the availability of staff in the parliamentary draftsman's office and the Attorney General's office.
I think the number of departmental staff who deal with these issues has been increased to enable the Minister to introduce some of this legislation in l998. Seven Bills were promised in the Government's programme. What is the position regarding legislation on architectural heritage and public parks? I do not understand why the Wildlife Bill needs to be amended in respect of NHAs. What was laid down in terms of necessary protection was known at the time the text was drafted, which was available to the Minister on assuming office.
I hope the national inventory of architectural heritage Bill will be published in late spring or early summer. That legislation necessitates consultation with other Departments, particularly the Department of the Environment and Local Government.
The legislation dealing with national parks and historical properties will not be published until next year. The Bills dealing with the national inventory of architectural heritage, wildlife, television coverage of major sporting events and broadcasting are currently a priority.
