Rarely has reform of a public body seemed more urgent than in the case of the extraordinary Broadcasting Commission of Ireland (BCI), with its godlike powers to dispense the legendary "licences to print money" , otherwise known as local radio franchises, writes John Waters
Reports of a raised eyebrow last week on the part of the Minister for Communications, Mr Ahern, coincided with two related events. One, the publication of a report of the Joint Oireachtas Committee for Communications, Marine and Natural Resources, expressing concern about the lack of transparency and accountability of recent BCI decisions, and the absence of appeal mechanisms for those aggrieved. The other, the belated publication by the BCI of its rationale for withdrawing the north-west franchise from NWR FM and awarding it to the wholly unknown quantity, North West Broadcasting Ltd (NWBL).
The explanation offered for the decision to close down NWR, putting 35 people out of work and alienating an entire region, is illogical when you consider that NWR has consistently been in the top three stations in the country, with listenership figures tipping 70 per cent.
The commission offered four reasons, two relating to NWR's past record: breaches of advertising regulations, and lack of wheelchair access to the station's main studios in Sligo. In response, NWR's management has claimed that breaches of advertising minutage guidelines are commonplace on virtually all local stations.
They also point out that their sister-station, MWR in Mayo, has a worse record and has attracted no sanction. They say their new studios in Donegal town are wheelchair-accessible, and that their licence application included a commitment to provide such access in Sligo.
The other reasons offered by the BCI relate to the respective proposals submitted by NWR and NWBL, one factor being that the latter proposed a fully dedicated service for the franchise area, whereas NWR has, since its inception, shared resources and management with MWR. (This arrangement was gratefully embraced by the IRTC in the late 1980s, when the original franchise-holder handed back the licence saying that, on second thoughts, local radio in the north-west was unviable. NWR, led by Paul Claffey, stepped into the breach.)
NWR management considers it odd that the issue of shared resources did not surface in deliberations in respect of the Mayo licence last year. They also point out that similar arrangements persist in other regions.
Second, the commission considered that "the programming vision of NWBL reflected to a greater extent the changing social and economic climate" and felt that NWBL had presented a strong case in respect of changing demographics, particularly in respect of the needs of younger listeners. The outraged belief in the region is that this reflects an urban sniffiness with regard to the predominantly rural, come-all-ye ethos of NWR.
Because the target region embraces both the increasingly cosmopolitan town of Sligo and some relatively remote areas of Donegal and Leitrim, NWR has had a tricky job keeping a broad range of listener types aboard.
The fact that NWR had plans for an opt-out, youth-oriented service, Bay FM, aimed at Sligo town, appears not to have convinced the commission.
Remarkably, the commission acknowledged the listenership success of NWR, admitting the station had delivered in respect of all of its programming obligations and could be expected to do so in the future. Success or compliance, it seems, are not defences.
There is sufficient material in the lack of substance in the BCI's rationalisations to attract concern. But the manner in which the decision was arrived at is more worrying still. It was intended to be made at a meeting of the BCI in Rathsallagh House, Dunlavin, Co Wicklow, on April 28th. This proved impossible when it emerged that four of the 10-member board had declared conflicts of interest, ensuring that, in the absence of two other members, a quorum could not be achieved.
It was agreed to hold another meeting on the following evening, at the BCI HQ in Dublin. There, a ballot resulted in three votes each for NWR and NWBL. In these circumstances, standing orders enabled the matter to be decided on the casting vote of the chairman, Mr Conor J. Maguire, who, voting a second time, plumped for NWBL. Thus, only 30 per cent of the commission approved the change.
Imagine: if this was the national TV franchise and RTÉ lost out in this way to TV3, what kind of outcry would there be? That a decision with such ramifications for employment, democracy and community welfare should be decided in such a manner is bizarre. It is not enough that the Minister initiate a review of the BCI; he must, as a matter of urgency, put a stay on all its recent decisions, in the interests of transparency, accountability and natural justice.