The Welsh Assembly Government has today submitted its response to the UK’s Government’s Digital Britain Interim Report.
Some of the key conclusions of the response include the need to ensure universal access to broadband; to stimulate investment in next-generation broadband; to increase DAB radio coverage; to ensure a strong competitor for the BBC in the provision of news and general English language programming for Wales and develop measures to increase the availability of the mobile network.
The Deputy First Minister and Minister for the Economy and Transport Ieuan Wyn Jones discussed the Welsh Assembly Government response during a meeting with Lord Carter, the UK Minister for Communications, Technology and Broadcasting.
Mr Jones said:
We recognise that the UK Government will have to prioritise actions and spending in deciding the way forward, but the Welsh Assembly Government is concerned that in this task of prioritisation we should maintain a clear separation between the need to sustain public service content and the need to develop the next generation of digital infrastructure. Both should be important aims of public policy. The one aim should not be pursued at the expense of the other.
In welcoming the aim of ensuring universal access to broadband Mr Jones said:
The Welsh Assembly Government has studied universal service models across the globe and has been calling for a robust debate about a possible Universal Service Obligation for broadband in the UK for some time, so we welcome plans to develop a realistic and deliverable universal service model as part of Digital Britain. It is essential however that such a model is designed to maximise economic and social benefits. With the right ambition, the UK Government is in a position to use the proposed Universal Service Commitment to drive deployment of fixed, next-generation broadband infrastructure in more outlying areas. This should be the preferred goal of such a commitment, although I recognise that other technologies may have to play a part in some areas. It is vital that the UK Government works in partnership with the Welsh Assembly Government and the other Devolved Administrations in taking this forward and I am pleased to see that this partnership has now begun to function in earnest.
In responding to the report, the Heritage Minister, Alun Ffred Jones, said:
This is a challenging time for the media in Wales. We are concerned that both the Ofcom Final Report and the Digital Britain report have seriously under-estimated the importance of general programming in the English language for Wales, in light of the reduction in ITV’s non-news English language programmes in Wales. The Welsh Assembly Government continues to believe that this is a key issue for viewers and which needed to be reflected in the development of UK policy in this area.
I also have reservations regarding the plans for full migration to digital radio due to poor coverage in Wales. Full migration to DAB should only be considered if there is a minimum of 97% coverage in Wales.
We welcome the proposal by Digital Britain to consider how the relationships between independent producers and those who commission their ideas could evolve in the future. We have proposed that one way of ensuring competition in news production is to give responsibility to a Media Commission.
The Welsh Assembly Government also welcomed the suggestion to put Channel 4 at the heart of a dedicated second public service organisation providing competition for quality to the BBC at a UK level, but noted the lack of staff presence in Wales. It was also noted that the proposals by both BBC and S4C for partnership working and news production merit full examination. The potential impact of any such developments on the broader ecology of broadcasting in Wales should be considered very carefully.
The Welsh Assembly Government response to the Carter report has been informed by the work of the Broadcasting Advisory Group. The Group was established in October 2008 by the Heritage Minister and produced a report to the Ofcom consultation on the Future of Public Service Broadcasting.
The Heritage Minister was in North Wales today to visit independent production companies to discuss the future of the TV industry in Wales. He visited Barcud Derwen, Rondo and Cwmni Da. During the afternoon the Minister took part in a Question and Answer session about the Digital Switchover during a Digital UK Stakeholder group meeting in North Wales.
