Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 21 March 2017
1125. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment his plans for the long-wave mast at Clarkestown, County Meath; the nature of its functions; if it will be decommissioned; and if there will be measurement of its emissions. [13484/17]
View answerThe RTÉ mast referred to by the Deputy has been used to transmit RTÉ Radio 1 long-wave service on 252 kHz since 2004, enabling RTÉ Radio 1 to be broadcast to Irish communities in Britain. In September 2014, RTÉ announced plans to shut down the service. While the initial plan was to close the long-wave service on 27 October 2014, the proposed closure has been deferred to allow for further research to be undertaken and for engagement to take place with relevant representative groups, including those in the UK.
As part of this, the Government’s emigrant support programme, administered by the Department of Foreign Affairs & Trade, has provided support for research into the listenership figures in Britain. The purpose of this research was to obtain concrete data on the current listenership and also to explore the possibility of continuing the service using alternate technologies.
Overseeing the research was a consultative group of key stakeholders composed of representatives of RTÉ, the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade officials and representatives of the Irish community in Britain. On 10th March, the consultative group issued a statement of agreed recommendations in respect of RTÉ’s long-wave radio service, which will now continue until the end of June 2019.
In terms of future plans for the mast, RTÉ is an independent national public service broadcaster and, as such, I have no role in operational matters such as decisions in relation to network infrastructure. As the appropriate licensing authority, the Commission for Communications Regulation (ComReg) is responsible for ensuring that all communications operators comply with their licence conditions in the use of radio spectrum. This includes conditions relating to non-ionising radiation and emissions from each transmitter operated under licence must comply with the latest international guidelines.
