I am very much aware of the impact and effect of this issue on a practical basis. That view was shared among all speakers, both Government and Opposition, in the discussion on Committee Stage.
As the amendment recognises, as part of their statutory public service remit under sections 114(1)(a) and 118(1)(a) of the Broadcasting Act 2009, both RTÉ and TG4 are required to operate free-to-air services and to make them a…
TDs / Charlie McConalogue
Charlie McConalogue
Minister of State at the Department of Culture, Communications and Sport
Portrait: © Houses of the Oireachtas (Oireachtas (Open Data) PSI Licence) · source file
0
questions asked
Oral and written, to government departments
105,063
words spoken in the chamber
105,063 as a minister, 0 as a TD
390
votes recorded
Each Yes, No or Abstained in a recorded vote
From the Dáil chamber only: committee meetings are not in this archive.
The record holds no parliamentary questions from them in this Dáil.
Month by month
Low months are usually recesses, when the Dáil does not sit. The archive runs to 22 October 2026.
Contributions to debates 317 in all
Dec 2024Oct 2026
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| December 2024 | 0 |
| January 2025 | 0 |
| February 2025 | 0 |
| March 2025 | 10 |
| April 2025 | 2 |
| May 2025 | 17 |
| June 2025 | 17 |
| July 2025 | 5 |
| August 2025 | 0 |
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| August 2026 | 0 |
| September 2026 | 11 |
| October 2026 | 63 |
Debates they spoke in most
Plus 263 contributions in the regular slots, such as Leaders' Questions and Priority Questions. Speech from the chair is not counted.
Party, constituency and offices
- constituency Donegal 29 November 2024 to now
- party Fianna Fáil 29 November 2024 to now
- office Minister of State at the Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media 29 January 2025 to 1 June 2025
- office Minister of State at the Department of Culture, Communications and Sport 2 June 2025 to now
The Government's position is entirely reasonable in relation to the approach that it is taking here. We agree and share the view on the issue and the desire to try to improve it and change the situation whereby programmes can be accessible all across the island. As I said in my contribution at the start, there is already provision in legislation under the Broadcasting Act requiring RTÉ to provide free-to-air services…
I know the Deputy will be aware that the Future of Media Commission recommended a comprehensive review of the provision of Irish language services and content across the media system and that this is to be undertaken by Coimisiún na Meán. Coimisiún na Meán's Irish language action plan is now at an advanced stage. The plan will be informed by the comprehensive review, a feasibility study into a new radio service for y…
I thank the Deputies for the amendments. I will go through them in the order that they were raised.
Amendment No. 5 provides that 50% of the members of the RTÉ board should be competent in the Irish language. As the Deputies are aware, there is currently no requirement for a minimum percentage of the RTÉ board to be competent in the Irish language. Section 27 of the Broadcasting (Amendment) Bill introduces a number …
I see the argument Deputy Gibney is making but there is a fair point in the alternative in terms of the way it is presented in the Bill at present. For example, if we were to follow the Deputy's approach, it would mean somebody who is not proficient in the Irish language would not be able to be a member of the audience council. As I said, there are many people who watch TG4 as it stands.
Of course, they can continue to watch TG4-----
-----and we want them to but were we to accept the amendment, they would not be able to take part in the audience council. They would be legislatively prohibited from taking part in it. I do not think that is appropriate either.
The legislation does not prohibit all 15 being proficient in Irish but it requires that at least ten must be.
It provides the opportunity for somebody who is not yet proficient. Somebody, for example, who is on the journey of learning Irish but is not yet proficient, who is keen and who feels they have a contribution to make to the TG4 audience council; people whom TG4 is assisting on their journey in becoming proficient in the language.
The Deputy's amendment would prohibit them from being able to contribute to the audienc…
I thank the Deputies. I will reiterate what the Minister, Deputy O'Donovan, said on Committee Stage about our clear expectation that State bodies comply fully with all applicable law, whether it be employment, copyright, social protection, tax law or any relevant case law. This includes the principle of equal pay for equal work as set out in the employment equality Acts and the protections for rights holders set out …
Amendment No. 9 proposed by Deputy Boyd Barrett would remove all of the proposed changes to the RTÉ independent programmes account set out in the Bill. In addition, it would remove the proposed requirement on TG4 to publish an annual report on its commissioning of productions from the independent sector. As the Deputy will be aware, section 116 of the Broadcasting Act 2009 currently provides that RTÉ shall pay a fixe…
I am glad to be here today to discuss the budget allocation for sport. As everyone in the House will agree, it is very hard to quantify the impact of sport and the joy it brings to our communities across the country. Over the past year, we have seen Troy Parrott's miracle of Budapest, Mayo's long-awaited all-Ireland success in Croke Park and Mark English, who is from my county of Donegal, winning a European 800 m gol…
The prize for best line of the day anyway.
I thank Deputy Heneghan and the many other Deputies across the House for their contribution to this debate and for the welcome opportunity, through the motion put forward by Deputy Boyd Barrett, to discuss the pressures households are facing as a result of very high energy costs.
The Government is deeply aware of and concerned about the pressures placed on households and businesses by high energy costs. Providing su…
I thank the Deputies for submitting this Topical Issue, which I am taking on behalf of the Minister for Transport, Deputy O'Brien.
The Minister has responsibility for policy and overall funding of public transport, but neither he nor his officials are involved in the day-to-day operation of public transport services. The NTA has statutory responsibility for securing the provision of public passenger transport servic…
I thank the three Deputies for their contributions and for raising this Topical Issue. I assure them that the Government is strongly committed to providing all citizens with reliable and realistic sustainable mobility options, and public transport plays a key role in the delivery of this goal. To support this objective, in budget 2026 the Department of Transport secured €940 million of funding for public service obli…
I thank Deputy Dolan for raising this very important issue and for his advocacy on behalf of the agricultural sector and young farmers in particular. The challenge of generational renewal in farming is widely recognised at national and EU levels. The programme for Government prioritises supporting intergenerational farm succession. Food Vision 2030, our shared strategy for the agrifood sector, states that generationa…
I thank Deputy Dolan again for taking up the mantle in relation to this important issue, and for trying to drive it on and achieve real progress. It is a crucial issue for maximising the potential of Irish agriculture and food production on this island, and it will be driven by young people coming into the sector. That is why I set up the commission for generational renewal just about two years ago. The good work don…
I thank Deputy Sherlock very much for raising this very important issue. PPOs, as the Deputy set out very clearly, are an alternative to lump sum awards as a method of paying compensation to catastrophically injured people.
Instead of receiving compensation in one tranche, as the Deputy laid out, a payment is made annually on an agreed date. The annual payment amount is calculated to meet the cost of permanent and l…
While the Minister for justice cannot be here in person this evening, I will pass on the key points the Deputy has made and her strong advocacy on this important issue.
As I mentioned, a working group on the indexation rate for periodic payment orders was established to advise on an appropriate index following a High Court determination that the index used in primary legislation was unworkable. As part of a two-stag…
I thank Deputy Gibney for raising this and for her clear articulation of the dangers and challenges we all have to deal with in how we respond and protect young people. Online safety, and particularly the protection of young people online, is crucial to all of us and is also a whole-of-government priority.
It is timely that we are discussing this topic, given the developments at EU level which have been moving in re…
I thank the Deputy. I outlined clearly in my initial response the progress we have seen. While we all agree appropriate safeguards and rails are needed given the impact social media can have on, and the dangers it poses to, society generally, a key priority for all of us has to be the protection of young people and vulnerable people, particularly children in relation to what they are experiencing as the first generat…
I thank Deputy O'Hara for raising this matter. I am answering on behalf of the Minister for Education and Youth, Deputy Hildegarde Naughton. At the outset, I will state that there is no requirement for any student to have a personal device in school. On 25 May this year, the Minister for Education and Youth communicated directly with all schools and boards of management to set out the Department's position that there…
I thank Deputy O'Hara. There is real recognition from the Government of the pressures on families at back-to-school time. That is why we put a number of supports in place each year, such as the back-to-school allowance. It is also why the Government engages with boards of management in schools to make sure that those costs are fully considered at school level and are managed. In the Minister's communication to school…
I thank Deputy Ó Snodaigh for bringing this motion before the House. I also thank the many Deputies across the House who have contributed to the debate on what is an extremely important topic. It is only right and appropriate that it gets attention and consideration in this House and that we work collectively to address the massive challenge AI can pose to our creative sectors. We are very fortunate to live in a coun…