412. Deputy Joanna Byrne asked the Minister for Culture; Communications and Sport the number of TV licences that were purchased, per month, from January 2020 to date, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [51215/26]

413. Deputy Joanna Byrne asked the Minister for Culture; Communications and Sport the evasion rate for those avoiding purchasing a TV licence, per month, from January 2020 to date, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [51216/26]

414. Deputy Joanna Byrne asked the Minister for Culture; Communications and Sport the number of households nationally that should be purchasing a TV licence, per month, from January 2020 to date, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [51217/26]

415. Deputy Joanna Byrne asked the Minister for Culture; Communications and Sport the number of TV licence notices that were issued; the number of court prosecutions that were initiated; the number of convictions for evading/non-payment of the TV licence and associated fines per month, from January 2020 to date, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [51219/26]

416. Deputy Joanna Byrne asked the Minister for Culture; Communications and Sport the breakdown by percentage rate, the total number of households in the State that have a TV; the total number of households in the State that must purchase a tv licence; the total number of households in the State that have a TV Licence exemption; the total number of households in the State that have evaded purchasing a tv licence, from January 2020 to date, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [51221/26]

I propose to take Questions Nos. 412, 413, 414, 415 and 416 together.

Sections 142 and 143 of the Broadcasting Act 2009 provide that a person shall not keep or have in his or her possession a television set save in so far as such keeping or possession is authorised by a valid television licence in respect of a premises. The Television Licence (Exemption of Classes of Television Set) Order 2009 (S.I. 319 of 2009) exempts small screen devices (such as mobile phones) and devices capable only of exhibiting television broadcasting services distributed by means of the publicly available internet only (such as laptops). Section 145(12) of the Broadcasting Act 2009 provides for the issuance of Free Television Licences by the Department of Social Protection to recipients of the Household Benefits Scheme.

Section 145 of the Broadcasting Act 2009 assigns An Post the role of statutory issuing agent for the purposes of the TV licence. The number of licences issued directly by An Post per month since 2020 is as follows:

At present, my Department uses a variety of publicly available and administrative data to estimate the number of premises in the State that hold a liable television set and the number of premises estimated to be in non-compliance with sections 142 and 143 of the Broadcasting Act 2009. These estimates are used to identify the TV licence evasion rate.

To inform the deliberations of the Technical Working Group (TWG) on the Reform and Enhancement of the Television Licence, my Department has undertaken a review of the methodology used to determine the estimated evasion rate and has recommended a number of amendments. Following the consideration of the Report of the TWG, the revised methodology and estimated evasion rate for 2024 and 2025 will be made available.

Some of the data used to estimate the evasion rate is published quarterly and annually, and accordingly the evasion rate is calculated on an annual basis. The annual estimate in the format requested by the Deputy is set out in tabular form below.

*As the number of ‘free’ licences issued fluctuates within each month, the monthly figure is based on the average number issued within any given month.

As statutory collection agent, operational issues regarding collection and enforcement are primarily a matter for An Post, who make every effort to promote the purchasing of a TV licence and thereby ensure compliance. This includes issuing reminder notifications in accordance with section 149 of the Broadcasting Act 2009 and undertaking household visits in accordance with section 146 of the Broadcasting Act 2009 to confirm possession of a liable device and valid TV licence, or otherwise.

An Post has informed me that the number of summonses issued by An Post and the number of cases brought to court per year are as follows:

The figures provided for 2020 and 2021 reflect reduced operational activities due to the impact of necessary public health restrictions. A monthly breakdown is not held by the Department. Not all summonses sought in any given year are brought to court in the same calendar year and may not be heard until the following year.

Details regarding the number of prosecutions, convictions and decisions of the District Court are a matter for the Courts Service and the Department does not hold this data.