A Sligo Leitrim TD has called on the government to follow the example of other EU countries and introduce a 0% VAT rate on newspapers in budget 2023.

Independent Deputy Marian Harking says that newspapers, particularly the locals, have been struggling for quite a number of years and many titles have gone out of business.

The former MEP says that newspapers staffed by professional journalists play a vital role in making sure that, as a society, we are informed by reliable, fact-checked news and information.

She believes they must be helped deal with storms, including the threat from the relatively unregulated social media sector and certain platforms purporting to be legitimate news sources.

Deputy Marian Harkin told Midwest News that this 0% VAT rate will help safeguard our democracy against misinformation and conspiracy theories...