Contributions
1,036 recent contributions in Hansard
HANSARDMedia Bill (First sitting)The position is that Ofcom has a duty to monitor the delivery of genres, and it produces a report on that. If it becomes clear, and Ofcom states, that the public service…05 Dec 2023HANSARDMedia Bill (First sitting)I want first to make it clear that the Government remain committed to the future of digital terrestrial television. We absolutely accept that millions continue to rely on it. We…05 Dec 2023HANSARDMedia Bill (First sitting)I am happy to say a little more about what the Department is doing. First, the hon. Member for Aberdeen North is absolutely right that broadband availability is one of the factors…05 Dec 2023HANSARDMedia Bill (First sitting)We completely recognise that terrestrial TV is important to many in the country. I was in my second incarnation as a Minister at the time of the Bilsdale fire, and I talked to…05 Dec 2023HANSARDMedia Bill (First sitting)As I say, we are committed to keeping the House updated about the research. I recognise the point, and my own expectation is that DTT will be around for quite some time to come.…05 Dec 2023HANSARDMedia Bill (Second sitting)I beg to move amendment 1, in clause 3, page 7, line 33, at end insert— “(5A) In this section, a reference to making available audiovisual content, in relation to a licensed…05 Dec 2023HANSARDMedia Bill (Second sitting)I welcome you to the Chair, Mrs Cummins. Clause 3 amends section 265 of the Communications Act 2003 to update public service remits of licensed public service channels to make…05 Dec 2023HANSARDMedia Bill (Second sitting)Section 266 of the Communications Act 2003 puts a duty on Ofcom to require providers of licensed public service channels to prepare statements of their programme policies that set…05 Dec 2023HANSARDMedia Bill (Second sitting)As the hon. Member for Barnsley East has already set out, section 270 of the Communications Act gives Ofcom enforcement powers to use in the event that it believes the provider of…05 Dec 2023HANSARDMedia Bill (Second sitting)My hon. Friend is right. It is a long-established principle that Ofcom is a post-transmission regulator. The acceptance of the amendment would change that and give Ofcom an…05 Dec 2023HANSARDMedia Bill (Second sitting)We are about to debate the fact that individual channels will be subject to some quotas. There are also the statements of programme policy that Ofcom will be required to approve.…05 Dec 2023HANSARDMedia Bill (Second sitting)Clauses 8 to 17 make amendments to the current system of quotas, which I will discuss in this group and the next. Quotas are an important tool to ensure that public service…05 Dec 2023HANSARDMedia Bill (Second sitting)I am grateful for the general expression of support from the Opposition. As I said, it is not the Government’s intention to make the quotas any less demanding than they are at…05 Dec 2023HANSARDMedia Bill (Second sitting)Clause 10 inserts proposed new section 278A into the Communications Act 2003. This will establish a mechanism for the creation of additional quotas for audio-visual content that…05 Dec 2023HANSARDMedia Bill (Second sitting)We debated earlier whether we should continue to have specified genres as part of the public service remit. As I said, the Government considered it better to specify that there…05 Dec 2023HANSARDMedia Bill (Second sitting)I beg to move amendment 3, in clause 15, page 17, line 28, after first “for” insert “available”. This amendment and Amendment 4 secure that networking arrangements must be…05 Dec 2023HANSARDMedia Bill (Second sitting)Clause 15 of the Bill amends section 290 of the Communications Act, relating to the existence of a system of networking arrangements that govern the interaction between the…05 Dec 2023HANSARDMedia Bill (Second sitting)I am grateful to all those who have made contributions. I will come on to address the points made by the hon. Member for Barnsley East returns, but first I will address the points…05 Dec 2023HANSARDMedia Bill (Second sitting)My hon. Friend tempts me to go down a route that could open up a whole new area of debate. I have to say that I share his concern about some of the decisions taken, particularly…05 Dec 2023HANSARDMedia Bill (Second sitting)Clause 18 inserts two new sections into the Communications Act to ensure that Ofcom has the powers to gather the information which it needs to regulate this part of the Bill…05 Dec 2023