Children not getting to view Irish stories on RTÉ, committee told

Children's programming on RTÉ television has just 6 per cent of home-produced content, a Dáil committee was told. This week's schedule on RTÉ2 shows 63 hours of children's TV, of which just eight hours is home-produced, according to Gerard O'Rourke, chairman of the animation committee of Screen Producers Ireland (SPI).

Irish children were watching Barney and Rugrats but "they are not getting to see Irish stories", said Mr O'Rourke. He called for a statutory obligation on RTÉ to have quotas of home-produced children's, young people's and animation programming.

Mr O'Rourke was speaking as a member of the SPI delegation, one of 14 groups that made presentations yesterday to an oral hearing on broadcast legislation, at the Joint Committee on Communications, Marine and Natural Resources.

RTÉ's director general, Cathal Goan, said the broadcaster had a major commitment to indigenous programming. "RTÉ produces a significant amount of home production, in-house and with the independent sector. It is part and parcel of Ireland's sense of itself," he said.

SPI, which represents 170 production companies, called for a "fair deal" with RTÉ, including programme-ownership rights and investment in indigenous feature films.

Earlier, the Broadcasting Commission of Ireland insisted there should be a single content regulator for public service and commercial broadcasting, which RTÉ and its unions oppose.