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Getting new regulator up and running was like building an aircraft while flying, says executive chair

Government has given approval for staffing levels at media and online safety regulator Coimisiún na Meán to increase to 200

Jeremy Godfrey says Coimisiún na Meán delivered on its mission over its first year while building the organisation at the same time
Jeremy Godfrey says Coimisiún na Meán delivered on its mission over its first year while building the organisation at the same time
Martin Wall's picture
Martin Wall
Sat Jun 08 2024 - 06:00

Establishing Coimisiún na Meán, the regulator of broadcasting and online media in Ireland, was no mean feat.

The executive chairman of the State’s newest regulator Jeremy Godfrey says that getting Coimisiún na Meán up and running over the last year or so was like building a plane while flying it.

It is taking over the functions of the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland and will establish a regulatory framework for online safety.

Mr Godfrey says it delivered on its mission over its first year while building the organisation at the same time.

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By the time many of the key staff had been recruited the underpinning legislation, the Online Safety and Media Act 2022, had already been passed by the Oireachtas.

He says it is inevitable there would “be things you wish were done differently”, but he had not come across issues that were fundamentally problematic.

“We were set up at breakneck speed,” he says.

Before its establishment in March 2023, he says the Government had to decide what type of agency it wanted and a number of departments were involved in the process.

Mr Godfrey says initially the organisation did not even have a HR person but over the last year has seen its staffing levels rise significantly.

The regulator has about 130 staff while the Government has approved an increase in headcount to 200 staff.

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It is led by Mr Godfrey as executive chair and a small group of commissioners dealing with online safety, media development and digital services.

He believes that to be fully operational a minimum staff of about 250 will be required.

Mr Godfrey comes to the role after more than 30 years of regulatory, government and business experience in the communications, technology and online sectors, in Ireland and Hong Kong.

He was previously chairman of the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (CCPC) and before that served as for eight years as a commissioner and chairman of the telecommunications regulator ComReg.