Vol. 474 No. 4
103 Mr. M. Kitt asked the Minister for Arts, Culture and the Gaeltacht if he has received representations regarding the reception of RTE 1 and Network 2 in the United Kingdom; and if he will make a statement on his proposals, if any, for improvements to the service. [3202/97]
RTE informs me that fringe off-air reception is available on the west coast of Britain. The quality of reception varies depending on the location and is subject to interference from other television channels. Having regard to international agreements to which Ireland is a party and which are the responsibility of my colleague, the Minister for Transport, Energy and Communications, it is not practicable to effect any further improvement in terrestrial coverage of Britain.
RTE informs me also that Tara Television is now available on a number of cable systems in Britain from 12 noon until midnight. The output of this channel includes home-produced programming from RTE 1 and Network 2 and RTÉ archive material.
With regard to reception in Northern Ireland I would refer the Deputy to my replies to previous questions, most recently on 19 December 1996, Columns 758 to 759 of the Official Report for that day refers.
