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Dateline: 18th April, 2007
On Monday 16th April part of the House of Commons question time was devoted to the problem of the Digital Dividend and the concerns which have been expressed by the entertainment industry. Tessa Jowell (Secretary of State, Department for Culture, Media & Sport) answered MPs' questions. The following is an extract from Hansard. David Taylor (North West Leicestershire, Labour) asked when she plans to discuss with Ofcom the outcome of the consultation on the digital dividend review and she replied, "Ofcom plans to release a statement on the consultation on the digital dividend review this summer. Before then, I will have full discussions with Ofcom about the findings of the consultation." David Taylor went on to say, "The Secretary of State will know of widespread concerns about the possibly unintended consequences of the DDR on the programme making and special events sector, which are highlighted by early-day motion 531, which has been signed by many hon. Members, including me. Will she reassure the House that Ofcom will guarantee that sufficient quality and quantity of spectrum will be available to prevent serious damage to this wide-ranging, £15 billion UK industry, which covers, inter alia, performing arts, news gathering and many major sporting occasions?" "I thank my hon. Friend for that," she replied. "I know that the matter is of great concern to him—he has taken a leading role—and to right hon. and hon. Members on both sides of the House. There are two elements: the impact on what are essentially amateur events, such as community festivals; and the possible impact on professional theatre and other forms of entertainment. Ofcom has recognised the specific concern about the perceived—I believe that it is unfounded—threat to professional entertainment. It will carry out a separate consultation specifically on that to ensure that any unintended consequences are avoided. "The Government are determined to avoid the risks that early-day motions and other interventions have outlined. Obviously, Ofcom's responsibility is to consider the market price that can be raised for spectrum. However, it was specifically put in the legislation that Ofcom would have to take account of the citizenship impact of any such decision. This is a good example of citizenship in practice." Peter Luff (Mid Worcestershire, Conservative) commented, "I was fascinated by the Secretary of State's reply. I assure her that the threats from the original proposals set out by Ofcom in its consultation document were not widely perceived, but very well founded. I am grateful to the Under-Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, the hon. Member for St. Helens, South (Mr. Woodward), for agreeing to meet a delegation of users—including those involved in the theatre industry, the film industry, the music industry, news gathering, sports, and special events such as Live Earth—to discuss in detail the consequences for the sector. Does the Secretary of State realise that if the original proposals are not amended, the effective loss of radio microphones will have a devastating impact?" "We absolutely recognise that," she replied. "It is why we shall not allow the review to have an impact on the sort of community events that I described, or on the professional theatre and other professional entertainment." Please note that all three Archive indices are very long and will therefore take some time to download.
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