Finbarr Bradley
Paddy O’Keefe (A Farmer Writes, January 6, 1995) is inconsistent in his arguments and fails to appreciate the true worth of Teilifís na Gaeilge (TnG). It is accepted that the Exchequer will spend £16 million in capital costs and £10 million in annual running costs to provide this service. I agree with him that in commercial terms it is probably not viable even though 30 high-quality jobs in the station itself and more than 200 in the independent production sector are anticipated.
Mr. O’Keefe portrays the benefits as confined to those involved in Irish language activities, admittedly a minority interest. However, this project has the potential to help nurture a culture of creativity and imagination in Ireland on a far wider scale.
Part of my job is to teach finance executives on DCU’s Masters in Investment and Treasury programme. I am exposed more than many to the inadequacy of using a strictly accounting measure based on the cost of providing this service to capture its true value or worth to the economy. Does Mr. O’Keefe believe the salaries paid dealers, soccer players or rock stars mean they contribute more to the welfare of society than farmers, social workers or teachers?
Mr. O’Keefe mentions Minister O’Higgins “saddling the taxpayer with the burden” of funding TnG. The market uses money to price goods and services. However, prices do not necessarily measure the true value to the economy if all effects are taken into account. One of the strongest arguments used by the farming community to justify financial support from the Government and Brussels is based on the principle that the market alone must not dictate the welfare of a society.
Farming organisations are rightly concerned about the effect on small farmers and farm families if pure market forces are allowed to govern. If Mr. O’Keefe agrees that price supports and subsidies for farmers should be abolished, then at least his arguments against TnG would be understandable. However, I suspect what is different in this case is that he fails to recognise the link between international competitive success, national self-confidence and self-sufficiency.
The main determinant of self-confidence is personal and national identity. Since language is the most critical component of identity, it plays a special role in enterprise development at both national and local level.
Moreover, his assumption that economic success is incompatible with minority languages derives little support internationally. The marketing performance of the Irish food industry in English-speaking countries like the US and the UK is not generally impressive compared to that of counterparts in other small countries such as Denmark, Finland and Norway. The Scandinavian nations with languages that are spoken by no one but themselves have been world leaders in innovation and design. Their sense of uniqueness binds the Danes together, for example, and motivates them while their sense of difference means they are acutely aware of cultural and linguistic differences in other markets and countries. In a highly competitive economic environment where niche marketing strategies are crucial, sensitivity to differences is crucial.
TnG embodies precisely the type of project which links language, identity and national self-confidence. Ireland’s future prosperity depends critically on understanding, appreciating and exploiting, if you will, our unique characteristics and traditions. This was well understood by Seán Lemass. To quote him:
“In our efforts to bring prosperity to the country we will find that the spirit of Irish nationality will be our greatest asset, and our surest guarantee of success”.
In setting up TnG, the Minister for Arts, Culture and the Gaeltacht, has correctly recognised that imagination will be the crucial stimulating factor in the Irish economy over the next decade. This is especially true for the development of consumer markets overseas for agricultural products. Mr. O’Keefe should recognise that he does farmers a disservice by using the same kind of narrow inward-looking reasoning which has severely restrained the potential of the Irish agricultural industry in the past.
*Professor Finbarr Bradley lectures in finance at Dublin City University.