TD Willie Penrose wants DJs to give 30% of airtime to Irish acts

It won’t be music to the ears of pop stars like Beyonce, One Direction, and Taylor Swift but Irish radio stations could soon be forced into ditching their latest singles for rarely heard indigenous Irish bands.

Under proposed plans agreed in theory by the Dáil, DJs will from later this year face a new quota regime designed to give at least 30% of their airtime to Irish-based acts otherwise struggling to break through onto the national airwaves.

The move was put forward by Labour TD Willie Penrose yesterday, with the opposition politician saying there is a need to guarantee Irish acts high-profile space to encourage the local industry and “our unique cultural ethos”.