1633. Deputy Cormac Devlin asked the Minister for Culture, Communications and Sport the amount of ringfenced Exchequer funding allocated to independent commercial radio stations in each of the years 2024, 2025 and to date in 2026; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [62058/26]

1635. Deputy Cormac Devlin asked the Minister for Culture, Communications and Sport whether, in the context of the establishment of Ciste na Meán under the Broadcasting (Amendment) Bill 2026, he will provide for a minimum share of scheme funding for content produced by independent radio broadcasters; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [62054/26]

I propose to take Questions Nos. 1633 and 1635 together.

The design, implementation and operation of funding schemes, including the Sound and Vision scheme, and the administration of funding through such schemes, is independently carried out by Coimisiún na Meán. Section 10 of the Broadcasting Act 2009, as amended by the Online Safety and Media Regulation Act 2022, states that "the Commission shall be independent in the performance of its functions". As such, I have no statutory role in respect of the operation of funding schemes administered by Coimisiún na Meán.

Accordingly, questions around the administration of funding are for Coimisiún na Meán to address. Coimisiún na Meán have a dedicated email address to deal with queries from members of the Oireachtas and they can be emailed at oireachtasqueries@cnam.ie

It is not intended that the Broadcasting (Amendment) Bill will provide for a minimum share of Sound and Vision scheme funding for content produced by independent radio broadcasters. However, I wish to draw the Deputy's attention to the significant supports already in place for commercial radio. In the first half of 2026, €4.3m was awarded to support the commercial radio sector at local, regional and national level, through the suite of funding schemes supporting the wider media sector. The funding included €3m in ring-fenced supports for the commercial radio sector, which was awarded by Coimisiún na Meán through Round 1 of the News Reporting Scheme. This is a significant increase in year on year funding for the sector and represents this Government's commitment to supporting independent radio.

On 27th August 2026, Coimisiún na Meán announced further funding of approximately €2.7m for independent radio under Round 2 of the News Reporting Scheme, which will provide further support for high quality news and current affairs content.

It is notable that the Media Fund schemes are an addition to other supports for the sector which provided considerable support to the radio sector over recent years. Between 2020 and 2025, the commercial radio sector was supported with over €13m in funding through the Sound and Vision Scheme, which is administered by Coimisiún na Meán on a competitive basis and supports high-quality content and programmes.