I move:—
Go ndeontar suim ná raghaidh thar £40,874 chun slánuithe na suime is gá chun íoctha an Mhuirir a thiocfaidh chun bheith iníoctha i rith na bliana dar críoch an 31adh lá de Mhárta, 1938, chun na dTuarastal agus na gCostaisí eile a bhaineann le Fóirleatha Neashrangach (Uimh. 45 de 1926).
That a sum not exceeding £40,874 be granted to complete the sum necessary to defray the Charge which will come in course of payment during the year ending on the 31st day of March, 1938, for the Salaries and other Expenses in connection with Wireless Broadcasting (No. 45 of 1926).
The amount of the Estimate for the Broadcasting Service for the year 1937-38 is £61,374, as compared with £57,700 for 1936-37, showing an increase of £3,674 mainly under sub-heads A, B and E. The extra expenditure is required principally to provide for increased staff, extension of programme hours, and additional power and lighting costs due to the increased power rating of the Athlone high power station. There is a reduction of £7,030 under sub-head F, but this is due to the fact that last year an abnormal item of £14,000 was included to provide for raising the power of the Athlone station.
The revenue from wireless receiving licences last year amounted to £52,000 approximately, showing an increase of about £8,100. Fees for advertisements and miscellaneous receipts amounted to £27,000, which shows an increase of about £3,500 compared with the previous year. The total broadcasting revenue amounted to £79,000 approximately. The direct expenditure on the Broadcasting Service out of all Votes last year amounted to about £69,200, so that revenue exceeded direct Vote expenditure by about £9,800.
The number of wireless licences issued last year was 104,000 approximately, which represents an increase of 16,800 over the previous year. It is estimated that the licences will reach the figure of 120,000 in the current financial year. The employment of special inspectors for the detection of licence defaulters has been continued and a considerable number of defaulters were prosecuted during the year. It is proposed to institute an intensive campaign against defaulters in the near future. The revenue from licence fees in the year 1937-38 is estimated at £60,000 and from advertisements, etc., at £32,000, making a total estimated revenue of £92,000.
The direct Vote expenditure during the year is estimated at £81,541, showing a surplus of £10,459. It should be borne in mind, however, that no commercial account is prepared for broadcasting as for the Post Office, and in considering total expenditure on the broadcasting service it is necessary, in addition to the direct Vote expenditure, to allow for capital charges in respect of cost of erection of stations, interest, depreciation, etc., and if full allowance is made for these charges broadcasting revenue would fall considerably short of broadcasting expenditure.
The outstanding broadcasting event last year was the increase in power of the Athlone high-power station from 60 to 100 kilowatts, which has resulted in better reception over a wider area. The power has been brought up to the limit allowed under international regulations, and the station now compares favourably with similar stations in other countries. Programme hours have been extended during the past year by 5½ hours per week, and the broadcasting hours on Sundays are now the same as on week-days. Broadcasts to schools have been extended, and a regular programme is now radiated on Monday to Friday from 2.30 p.m. to 3.0 p.m. With the further co-operation of the educational authorities it is expected that these broadcasts will form part of the curriculum of a large number of schools in the future.
The number of players in the orchestra was increased last year from 19 to 24, and it is proposed to bring the number up to 28 in the near future. The number of outside broadcasts last year was approximately 300, which shows an increase of nearly 50 per cent. on the previous year. The co-operation of local committees has been enlisted for regional broadcasts, and a good deal of talent has been discovered in the rural areas. There have been considerable developments in the broadcasting service during the past year, and the staff both on the programme and on the engineering sides has been increased. Additional equipment has been installed in the studio, and I think it may be claimed that programmes of better quality, more variety and greater interest are now being radiated. Further improvements are in contemplation, and every effort will be made during the coming year to provide still more attractive programmes.