Louth TD hails equal access for ‘under served’ audiences in the north

By Olivia Ryan, The Drogheda Independent

Louth TD Joanna Byrne has welcomed moves to ensure equal access to broadcasting services for audiences across the north of Ireland.

The Joint Oireachtas Committee on Arts, Media, Culture, Communications and Sport, in its pre-legislative scrutiny report on the proposed Broadcasting (Amendment) Bill, agreed a cross-party recommendation to recognise audiences in the north of Ireland as “under-served audiences” and endorse the incorporation of provisions proposed in Sinn Féin’s Broadcasting (All Ireland Service) Bill 2025 to ensure equal access to services across the whole island of Ireland.

Louth TD and Sinn Féin spokesperson on Media, Communications and Sport, Joanna Byrne, said: “I welcome that colleagues from across government and opposition have come together to recognise that the geo-blocking of audiences, exclusion from competitions and erasure from maps of the 6 Counties by RTÉ needs to be addressed.

“This recommendation was one of a number of Sinn Féin proposals accepted on a cross-party basis at Committee, and demonstrates a unity of purpose among TDs and Senators to making sure national broadcasters serve the whole of the nation.

“The Committee also agreed that regional public meetings should be held across Ireland, including in the six Counties, as part of nationwide consultations by the Audience Councils of RTÉ and TG4 to ensure the input of audiences when providing feedback.

“I encourage the Minister for Culture, Communications and Sport, Patrick O’Donovan TD, to heed the call by his Government colleagues to implement the proposals to end geo-blocking and include audiences across the island when he drafts the final Bill.”