AS the heads of the draft broadcasting legislation have such an impact on the structures and work of RTE, the only national broadcaster, I confine myself essentially to that impact. The appointment of Bob Collins as RTE's new director general is to be welcomed. He brings a wide experience and a deep understanding of the national broadcasting culture to the office, with a commitment to promote broadcasting as a cultural activity and to establish high standards for programming within the organisation.
The new director general is, however, faced with an extraordinary broadcasting landscape painted for him by the Minister for Arts, Culture and the Gaeltacht, Mr Higgins, in the draft legislation circulating throughout Government Departments as a prelude to its introduction as legislation. I understand the draft legislation has not been discussed with RTE, which is a very unusual and bizarre situation, and that the incoming Director General and indeed the outgoing one have not had sight of the Minister's proposals, which are cataclysmic in their intention and scope.
The Minister proposes that the new broadcasting structures will be cent red on a higher authority of the Mitterrand type in France, wherein a full time Irish broadcasting commission would function as the supervisory body for all forms of broadcasting in Ireland. The members of the commission would serve in a whole time capacity and be appointed by the Government. The heads of the draft legislation suggest that a five person commission be appointed. In the case of the ordinary members this would be for a five year period, while the chair would be appointed for seven years.
The idea of a "super authority" was raised in the Minister's Green Paper issued in April 1995, but nothing in that suggestion prepares one for the major powers now proposed for the commission and the reduction in the status of RTE from an authority to a corporation responsible to the proposed commission.
Consideration of the powers of the proposed commission gives an indication of their scope in relation to the now proposed national broadcasting corporation of RTE. The Irish broadcasting commission would subsume the existing function of the present IRTC and in regard to RTE the commission would:
. "Investigate the administrative structures of RTE" to ensure they are adequate for the purpose of the RTE remit and that "the structures employed by RTE promote innovation, quality and diversity in its programming."
. "Following such an investigation and following consultation with RTE, require RTE to make changes to its administrative structures.
. ". . . establish specific elements of RTE activities as separate entities; under the control of a separate board if this arrangement is considered to be beneficial to broadcasting; in general in Ireland." The draft heads of the bill give the issue of TV signals transmission as an example of one which might be placed under the commission's direct control.
. Examine RTE commercial activities and require, RTE, if considered in the public interest, to make changes in those practices or cease certain activities.
. Examine costs of various RTE activities so that it (the commission) may form a view as appropriate as to the comparative costs of different elements of RTE activities.
. "Draw up and amend from time to time a charter for RTE which may expand on the legal obligations of RTE."
As if to underline the scope of the powers to be given to the new commission, the draft legislative proposals also place the functions of the Broadcasting Complaints Commission within she remit of the commission and subsumes those functions under it. Were the national broadcaster (RTE) to be found by the proposed commission to be in serious and continuous breach of editorial guidelines which the commission would establish, then the commission could recommend to the Government the removal of the board of RTE and the Government would place such a proposal by motion, before both houses of the Oireachtas.
The Broadcasting Complaints Commission exercises a function of a semi judicial kind which should not be vested in a regulatory body. It has a persuasive authority which should be exercised independently of any broadcasting commission or authority.
The intended Irish broadcast commission will have the capacity, under the Minister's legislation, to propose the separation of specific elements of the RTE operation and establish them as separate bodies each with its own boards of management - i.e. new State boards or privatised commercial bodies. This may well be in anticipation of the difficulties likely to be encountered particularly by TV3, but also by Radio Ireland.
What we are looking at in prospect is the dismantling of the present RTE functions as a broadcasting authority and their relocation within a new broadcasting commission. This process will be carried out by an investigative process between the commission and RTE. Such a process will inevitably be time consuming, painful and burdensome, and frustrate the efforts of the newly appointed director general to give effect to his shopping list of plans, which I presume was the basis of his appointment by the Authority with the approval of the Minister.
What I find strange about the whole matter is that the present RTE Authority was not consulted about these draft proposals, and, given the process involved in the filling of the post of its director general, surely that process should have been informed by the Minister's draft legislation. The Authority, appointed by the Minister in June 1995, could hardly have seen itself or its work as being to preside over the demise of RTE as we know it. I doubt if Bob Collins would see his role in that fashion either.
The creation of a broadcasting quango will do little to improve the quality or quantity of indigenous programming. It's the old problem with much of the Minister's activities new structures but no money. True, Teilifis na Gaeilge does get its statutory independence as a body cast in similar fashion to the new look RTE but drawing essentially from the same financial pot and as a burden on RTE. It is clear that the Minister believes the present structures in broadcasting no longer enjoy public confidence. This is a view which the Minister has kept to himself.
Equally the Minister has kept to himself whatever plans he may have for the use of compressed digital frequencies in the public interest. Rather has he thrown what should be ministerial responsibilities into the lap of his proposed commission and weakened the national broadcaster not only by his proposals but the very bay in which he has treated with RTE.
The idea that these proposals provide a hands off mechanism for broadcasting is, of course, absurd, as the Minister is at the end of the day positioned at the reference point when hard decisions have to be taken by his proposed commission.
The timing of progress for the legislation will, of course, be conditioned by other events leading to the general election. The draft legislation in its present form is a mix of old fashioned socialist authoritarianism, poor thinking about broadcasting and busy bodying. It does not augur well for the future health of broadcasting culture in the State.
Writing some time ago about RTE and its new director general, I said "The RTE Authority and its new DG may well have to disagree, and profoundly so, with the Minister and the proposed legislation." I certainly did not contemplate the order of such change as the Minister now proposes. It flies in the face of the views issued by the Authority on the substance of the Green Paper. The Authority is empowered under the Broadcasting Authority (Amendment) Act, 1976 to offer its views on any proposal, being a proposal concerning policy as regards broadcasting, which is of public controversy or the subject of current public debate and which is being considered by the Government or the Minister."
It seems to me the Minister's proposals fall within the scope of that section and if the Authority is neither to be tentative nor accommodating, it should address the Minister's draft legislation in the public interest.
