Select committee: Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Committee

Recommendation 10

Sixth Report - The future of public service broadcasting Published 25 Mar 2021 Paragraph 61 Addressed to Department for Culture, Media and Sport

Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Committee The future of public service broadcasting All items in this report Report on parliament.uk ↗ Inquiry on parliament.uk ↗

Recommendation (the committee's words)

It took the Government almost 10 months to respond to the consultation on decriminalisation of TV licence fee evasion. Delays of this nature by DCMS in reforming other areas of broadcasting, such as prominence, would be of significant concern. Of more concern was that the long-delayed response simply provided further uncertainty. The issue of decriminalisation could be used as a bargaining tool by the Government during the ongoing licence fee settlement negotiations with the BBC and S4C, and thereby undermine one of the core principles of public service broadcasting: that it should be removed from Government interference. We call on the Government to provide assurances that the issue of decriminalisation will not be used as a bargaining tool during the ongoing licence fee settlement negotiations with the BBC and S4C. We also recommend that the Government conclude its further work on enforcement schemes, and publish its findings, by the end of the current parliamentary session.

From: Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Committee, Sixth Report - The future of public service broadcasting (HC 156), paragraph 61, 25 March 2021

Government response

The future of public service broadcasting: Ofcom Response to Committee’s Sixth Report of Session 2019–21

The government responded to the whole report on 3 November 2021.

Summary written by Accountability Index from the government's response. It is not the government's own words.

Ofcom responds to the Committee's recommendations by pointing to its existing and planned work, agreeing on the importance of diversity in senior roles but stating it does not have legal powers to set diversity targets.

On local and regional news, Ofcom has commissioned further analysis of network news coverage across the UK, which it hopes to publish "at the beginning of next year".
On a single video platform, Ofcom found "some support" for one and is "encouraging PSBs to pursue opportunities to collaborate", noting collaboration "doesn't have to be exclusively amongst PSBs".
On employment data and monitoring forms, Ofcom says it lacks legal powers to require some information from non-BBC PSBs, and will launch a call for inputs, "expected in Spring 2022", and "intend to review" its monitoring forms.
On annual review of regional production guidelines, Ofcom says frequent changes make assessment "more difficult" and points to spot checks, an enhanced complaints process and annual PSB reporting to monitor the regime.

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First Special Report - The future of public service broadcasting: Government Response to Committee’s Sixth Report of Session 2019–21

Published 17 June 2021.

Summary written by Accountability Index from the government's response. It is not the government's own words.

The government agrees with the Committee that the need for public service broadcasting remains strong, says it is reviewing the system and will set out its position and next steps "later this year", and disagrees with parts of the report.

On universality, it agrees this is "a core tenet" of public service broadcasting, but "does not agree" with the Committee's link between full-fibre availability and a wholly online system.
On licence fee funding, it "notes" the Committee's view but does "not agree" that a decision is needed now. It has "no plans to change the model" before the Charter ends in December 2027.
On prominence, it has "committed to acting on Ofcom's prominence recommendations including through legislation" "as soon as the legislative timetable allows", and expects to set out next steps later this year.
On children's content, it says DCMS and the administrators will conduct a full evaluation of the pilot, after which "a decision will be taken on whether to close, maintain or expand the scheme".

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