Key Facts

• The Committee will meet at specific times from December 5th to December 14th.
• The proceedings will follow a detailed order of clauses, schedules, and remaining parts of the Bill.
• There are no scheduled oral evidence sessions for the Media Bill.
• The Committee will meet at 2 pm every Tuesday and Thursday until December 14th, or earlier if the Bill is completed sooner.
• Copies of any written evidence received by the Committee will be circulated to Members via email and published on the Bill webpage.
• Amendment 39 seeks to add a requirement for broadcast transmission time in Scottish Gaelic language as spoken in Scotland.
• Amendment 39 relates to Gaelic language programming.
• MG ALBA and BBC Alba are involved in producing Gaelic language TV in Scotland.
• There is concern about the lack of requirement for a minimum amount of Gaelic language public service broadcasting.
• Hywel Williams was involved in establishing S4C in the 1970s.
• The document "Building an S4C for the future" by Euryn Ogwen Williams provides lessons from S4C's history.
• Welsh-language programmes now air during peak hours, contributing to language growth and economic benefits.
• According to the Scottish Government’s Gaelic language plan, 1.7% of Scotland's population speaks, reads, writes or understands Gaelic (87,000 people).
• MG ALBA sustains around 340 jobs.
• BBC Alba launched in 2008 as a partnership between MG ALBA and the BBC.
• MG ALBA makes a significant contribution to Gaelic speakers.
• Clause 1 includes support for minority languages like Gaelic in the new public service remit for television.
• BBC Alba broadcasts 7 hours of Gaelic content daily, with an additional hour on weekends.
• The charter review must be completed by 2027.
• BBC and Scottish Government officials have met to discuss funding coordination for Gaelic broadcasting.
• There is a significant funding difference between Welsh and Gaelic language broadcasting.
• Scots language programming is limited despite an increase in young Scots speakers.
• Ofcom will monitor the delivery of public service remit under the Bill but not necessarily under future charter negotiations.
• Amendment 40 would add reporting requirements for Ofcom.
• Currently, 6% of spend is made in Scotland despite it having 8.5% of UK’s population.
• People in Scotland watch slightly more television than people in most of the rest of the UK.
• Martin Vickers discusses amendments related to clause 1 and clauses 2 and 7.
• New clause 1 proposes giving Ofcom powers to monitor and set programming quotas for public service broadcasters if the current level is unsatisfactory.
• The new clause defines relevant television services as those provided by the BBC, Welsh Authority, Channel 3, Channel 4, and Channel 5.
• The weekly reach of broadcast TV fell to 79%, down from 83% in 2021.
• On-demand viewing reached 53 minutes a day this year.
• ITV estimates that 3.8 million households in the UK are online only.
• The statement expresses concern about the potential removal of terrestrial TV for vulnerable groups.
• Public service content includes news, children's programming, distinctively British content, and regional languages.
• Music is not specifically protected under the current amendment.
• The Bill updates section 264A of the Communications Act to implement a new public service remit.
• On-demand provision must be online for at least 30 days to count towards fulfilling the remit.
• News and live sports coverage are exempt from this requirement due to their immediate value.
• Amendment 36 would amend the definition of public service for Channel 4 to include an obligation to broadcast via UHF frequencies receivable by at least 98.5% of the UK population.
• Amendment 37 aims to ensure Channel 3 licensees provide broadcasts using MPEG standards via UHF frequencies that can be received by a minimum of 98.5% of the UK population.
• The amendments aim to address significant digital exclusion and maintain access to public service broadcasts for vulnerable communities.
• Millions of UK households rely on broadcast television for access to visual content.
• Under current infrastructure, 98.5% of the population can receive broadcast television.
• The Government has legislated to secure continuity of digital terrestrial television (DTT) until at least 2034 through renewed multiplex licences.
• The Government remains committed to universal gigabit broadband availability by 2030.
• A six-month research project will be led by the University of Exeter to assess changing viewing habits and technologies.
• Ofcom has been asked to undertake an early review on market changes affecting content distribution.