TV Licence collection to go to public tender; other digital devices to be examined
The Minister for Communications, Richard Bruton, today published the Broadcasting Bill which includes a number of measures to support local community radio, reducing the levies placed on independent broadcasters. The minister today also announced changes to how the TV licence fee will be collected now and into the future and a review of the Broadcasting Act.
Minister Bruton said: “Public service broadcasting is more important now than ever. Independent, objective reporting of domestic and international affairs is crucial. However, we must recognise that the landscape in which broadcasters operate is undergoing a transformation and that this gives rise to new challenges. Audiences are transitioning away from traditional platforms and are increasingly accessing content online through digital mediums.
“Today, I am publishing the Broadcasting (Amendment) Bill 2019. This Bill will enable the broadcasting levy to be reduced for all broadcasters and for some community broadcasters to be exempted entirely. It allows for the creation of a new funding scheme that would allow the granting of bursaries to journalists in local or community radio stations. We must support our local community radio stations and independent broadcasters.”
The minister today also announced that the Government will accept the recommendations of the Working Group on the Future Funding of Public Service Broadcasting and will be putting the collection of the TV licence fee out to public tender later this year. This will allow a five-year contract for the service to be put in place, allowing the successful bidder the opportunity and the incentive to invest in the system of collection.
The Government has also agreed that at the end of the five year contract period, the licence fee should be replaced by a device independent broadcasting charge which takes account of technological change and will enable the sustainable funding of public service content in the longer term. It is estimated that 10% of homes access content on alternative devices which do not require a television licence.
Minister Bruton said: “Most people pay their TV licence fee. However, we still see approximately 12% evasion which we need to address. By tendering for a contract of five years, this will allow the awarded body the chance to invest in a robust collection service.
“It is also clear that due to the nature of technological change and the movement towards digital devices, the design of the TV licence fee will have to change. This is a fundamental reform that will take time to develop, but it will future proof the funding model, taking account of changes in technology and in how content is now consumed.”
The current provision of free TV licences to those in receipt of the Household Benefits Package will continue. The option of purchasing TV licences at post offices will remain regardless of who the successful awardee of the contract is.
Finally, Minister Bruton is today also announcing a review of the Broadcasting Act, to evaluate the proportion of the TV licence revenue which is allocated to the Sound and Vision Scheme which supports the independent sector and native Irish content. The review will also consider the minimum amount of funding that RTE is obliged to spend on commissioning external content. In 2018 this amounted to €39.7m. Increasing this amount would provide an important stimulus to the independent production sector.
“The objective of this review will be to see how we can best support original Irish content production," he stated.
An Post reaction
An Post said the announcement offers some clarity on the future of the licence.
The Television Licence contract is an important part of An Post’s business strategically, a key facet of our public service role and an essential income stream for our Postmasters and the national Post Office network. An Post has long argued that the contract needs to be longer term than the current annual renewal to allow for investment into databases and IT to facilitate more efficient collection.
In 2018 An Post achieved TV Licence sales revenue of €166m on behalf of the Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment, with the sale of 1,038,986 TV Licences. This represents a 1% increase on the prior year and an additional €2 million revenue for the Department.
The 2018 evasion rate was 12.83%, down from 14.1% in the prior year. This 1.27% improvement demonstrates An Post’s commitment and focus in growing licence sales in a very challenging market rife with difficult conditions, many of which are outside the control of An Post. Licence fee collection is a difficult and complex task as the TV Licence is a voluntary tax. Achieving a compliance rate of 87% under current conditions is a credit to An Post’s Licence collection team across the country.
An Post remains committed to delivering an effective and efficient TV Licencing system for Ireland and to providing great customer service throughout. We await the detail of the planned tender which is due later this year.
SIPTU calls for faster implementation
SIPTU has called on Minister Bruton to recognise the extent of the funding crisis for public service broadcasting by the speedier implementation of the new media charge which was announced today.
SIPTU Head of Services, Karan O’Loughlin also said that union members would oppose the out-sourcing of licence fee collection and the imposition of any additional financial burden on households who are currently paying their TV licence.
She said: “This is not a new charge and it should only affect financially those who are currently not paying the TV licence. The level of non-compliance with the TV licence payment contributes to the serious funding problem experienced by public service broadcasting.
“Everybody needs to understand that content such as news, current affairs, children’s programmes, drama and sports coverage don’t happen magically. Content has to be produced and paid for. The Public Service Broadcaster also contributes a minimum of €40 million a year to the independent production sector which generates further employment and quality content.
“An independent Public Service Broadcaster is a vital part of any functioning democracy. The alternative is either a government-controlled broadcaster or we have a Republic where all media and broadcasting is owned by private companies pursuing their own agendas.”
She added: “The minister has proposed that the media charge be introduced in five years’ time. Such an extended wait for its introduction will result in the destruction of public service broadcasting in this country. Unless there is speedier action taken the announcement this morning amounts to little more that the Government abdicating its responsibility to the maintenance of quality public service broadcasting. The trade union movement would also be concerned about any proposal to outsource the collection of the licence fee to private companies.”
Bruton’s policies will undermine public service broadcasting, lead to job cuts – National Union of Journalists
The National Union of Journalists has warned that the Minister for Communications is undermining public service broadcasting by failing to adequately support RTÉ and by his refusal to implement urgent reforms of the TV licence fee system.
Irish Secretary Séamus Dooley said that the Minister’s “private sector mentality” poses a threat to employment and to public service broadcasting. He renewed the NUJ’s call for a Commission on the future of the media in Ireland which would look at all the challenges facing, print, broadcasting and digital platforms.
In a statement he said: “This is a bad news day for anyone with a commitment to public service values. While we welcome the principle of replacing the current licence fee with a broadcasting charge it is absurd that this should take five years. The crisis facing public service broadcasting is such that this move will be too little too late. It is telling that the government has ignored the recommendation of the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland, (BAI) which he has championed as an independent regulator. BAI has recommended that RTÉ should receive immediate government funding of €30m to deal with the current financial crisis. In October 2018 the BAI recommended that, at a minimum, RTÉ should receive an immediate increase in its annual public funding of €30m and recommended an increase of €6m per year in public funding for TG4 ‘to assist them in meeting environmental, technological and financial challenges while also fulfilling audience expectations, both now and into the future.’
Mr Bruton invokes the report of the Working Group on the Future of Public Service Broadcasting to support his position. It is hard to escape the conclusion that independent advice is accepted when it conforms with his private sector based view of communications policy which, despite his rhetoric to the contrary, devalues public service broadcasting.
The current licence collection system is broken and is in urgent need of reform. I am not convinced that outsourcing to a private, commercial company would be the best option. It is an absolute scandal that successive governments failed to address the high evasion rate, now at 12pc, and it should not have been beyond the ability of the current minister to ensure a more efficient system by An Post. The government must be mindful of the employment implications of removing the service from An Post and reform of the collection method would make far more sense. If that cannot be delivered the NUJ would favour collection by the Revenue Commissioners.
We have well founded concerns for the future of employment in RTÉ. Working with our sister unions in RTÉ and with the support of the ICTU the NUJ will resist attacks on employment in RTÉ and we will expect the full support of the RTÉ Executive and Board in defending the integrity of the primary public service broadcaster in Ireland.
RTÉ employees have met their public service obligations and delivered a world class service. In this regard we are especially concerned at the Minister’s suggestion that further money should be diverted to private sector production companies. The way to support original Irish content production is to ensure a sustainable future for RTÉ.”
Séamus Dooley said the NUJ has a number of concerns about the provisions of the Broadcasting (Amendment) Bill 2019 and will be examining the Bill in the coming weeks.
He said: “While the principle of bursaries for journalists in local or community radio stations may be worth supporting we would have real concerns about the license feel being used to prop up stations owned by commercial companies who have failed to invest in journalism and who, in some cases, employ workers on low wages and precarious contracts. We believe that before any such funding is made available there should be a public consultation process and engagement with the NUJ, as the representative trade union. There is also a need for a review of the governance structures of the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland, which is established without provision for trade union or staff representation.
Overall, the NUJ believes there is a need for a Commission on the future of the media in Ireland which would examine the challenges and opportunities across all sectors. It would not be confined to broadcasting and would look at potential supports for print and digital platforms, at the promotion of media diversity, of training and community access as well as employment standards.
The report of the Forum on Broadcasting was published in 2002. The Commission on the Newspaper Industry was published in 1996. There is now a need for an all-embracing commission. If there is to be a five-year lead-in to the introduction of the new charge let us at least set about the task of planning for the future in a strategic manner. A key objective of any plan should be the maintenance and protection of public service broadcasting.”