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1,036 recent contributions in Hansard
HANSARDMedia Bill (Fifth sitting)On amendment 32, the hon. Lady and I have debated the secondary legislation provided for in this Bill, and in other Bills in the past. In this case, we do not agree that the…12 Dec 2023HANSARDMedia Bill (Fifth sitting)I have no doubt that van drivers spend as much time listening to the radio as car drivers do, so the hon. Lady is absolutely right to highlight vans. Turning back to the amendment…12 Dec 2023HANSARDMedia Bill (Fifth sitting)Indeed.12 Dec 2023HANSARDMedia Bill (Third sitting)Clauses 32 to 36 relate to S4C and enact the recommendations made in the “Building an S4C for the future” independent review. The clauses update S4C’s powers, public service…07 Dec 2023HANSARDMedia Bill (Fourth sitting)Perhaps I should start by outlining the purpose of clause 44, which makes changes to section 314 of the Communications Act to reflect the evolution of the market and the findings…07 Dec 2023HANSARDMedia Bill (Fourth sitting)That is a matter for Ofcom to determine. As I said, Ofcom will be able to ensure that a local radio multiplex, through its licence, can provide space for a local news service. For…07 Dec 2023HANSARDMedia Bill (Fourth sitting)The powers relate to future shortages. I suspect that we could not backdate the provisions to kick someone with a contract off a multiplex. Perhaps it would be helpful if I later…07 Dec 2023HANSARDMedia Bill (Fourth sitting)I hope to provide my hon. Friend with further detail in my response to the amendment of the hon. Member for Barnsley East. I take my hon. Friend’s point, however; people expect to…07 Dec 2023HANSARDMedia Bill (Fourth sitting)I would love to spend time debating the importance of local newspapers with the hon. Lady; it is a point on which I completely agree. I also share her concern about the…07 Dec 2023HANSARDMedia Bill (Fourth sitting)The clause amends section 359 of the Communications Act 2003 to give the Secretary of State the power to provide financial assistance for, or in connection with, the provision of…07 Dec 2023HANSARDMedia Bill (Fourth sitting)This clause makes changes to sections 245 and 402 of the Communications Act. It enables overseas digital radio services to be provided on a local or small-scale multiplex, where…07 Dec 2023HANSARDMedia Bill (Fourth sitting)The hon. Lady is right that, at the moment, the demand is primarily from Ireland. If there were to be significant demand from other countries, this would need to be reviewed in…07 Dec 2023HANSARDMedia Bill (Fourth sitting)This clause updates provisions in the Broadcasting Act 1996 to remove Ofcom’s function of overseeing the line-ups of national and local radio multiplexes, in light of the…07 Dec 2023HANSARDMedia Bill (Third sitting)My hon. Friend makes an interesting point, and I have sympathy with the concern he expresses. However, if this Bill was not passed, the advantages of being a public service…07 Dec 2023HANSARDMedia Bill (Third sitting)This section of the Bill on prominence is a central part of the changes the Government wish to make. Although the hon. Lady has done a good job setting out the reasons we decided…07 Dec 2023HANSARDMedia Bill (Third sitting)I am happy to address that point. The hon. Lady also raised the subject, which was debated on Second Reading and in the Select Committee, of whether the requirement for…07 Dec 2023HANSARDMedia Bill (Third sitting)My hon. Friend is right. As he says, the technology in this area is evolving very rapidly, so it is important that the regulatory framework is sufficiently flexible to keep up to…07 Dec 2023HANSARDMedia Bill (Third sitting)I very much agree with my hon. Friend. As I said—and as the hon. Lady the Member for Barnsley East mentioned in her remarks—the issue of regional prominence is important. It is…07 Dec 2023HANSARDMedia Bill (Third sitting)As I said earlier, the Bill does not, at the moment, suggest that prominence should be required on mobile phones, because they are not primarily used for watching TV, but the…07 Dec 2023HANSARDMedia Bill (Third sitting)I am most grateful to hon. Members for raising a number of interesting questions. The general answer to them is that these matters need to be considered by Ofcom when it draws up…07 Dec 2023