Legislative Reform (Renewal of Radio Licences) Order 2020

Lord Foster of Bath Excerpts

Friday 27th November 2020 Lords Chamber

[Lord Foster of Bath (LD)]

My Lords, I welcome the order and in doing so I particularly welcome, as others have said, the addition to it of small-scale multiplexes and the potential benefit that that could bring. Before I say anything further, however, I want to give huge praise to the Government for achieving something that I have never seen before. I have spoken in a number of debates recently and have had to look through explanatory memorandums that, frankly, I have not begun to understand. The explanatory document, as it is called, that we have been provided with for this debate is exemplary. I praise it and ask the Minister to pass on my thanks to all those in her department who were responsible for its production.

I have only two things to say about the order. The first is that the Minister referred to the announcement made back in February that there will be a review of digital radio. I believe that this is long overdue. The Government promised that when certain criteria of radio listenership were met, there would be a review. Those criteria were met in May 2018. In May 2019, the Government announced that they intended to have a review, but it took them until February 2020 to announce that review. We will not get the results until March 2021, and no doubt several months after that before we get a response from the Government on what they intend to do.

This will not be a pleasure for the noble Baroness, Lady Altmann, to hear, but I have long argued that we should be more urgently looking to have the same sort of radio switchover as we have had so successfully in relation to television. I am firmly convinced that were the Government to invest money in improving the digital infrastructure, there would be huge benefits not just in terms of radio listening, but so much more; that funds would be saved for the operators in that they would not have to have dual transmission; and that there would be an enormous benefit to the Treasury through the auction that could then take place of the analogue spectrum that had become available. I am disappointed that the Government have adopted what they call the “listener-led” approach, and I note that the Minister has said that she “reasonably thinks” it is likely that analogue will come to an end by the end of the current decade—another 10 years—which I personally believe is a wasted opportunity.

The other thing I want to remark on is the comments made by the noble Lord, Lord Kirkhope, and the noble Baroness, Lady Gardner of Parkes. Both referred to the vital importance of local radio. In my view, local radio has been diminished by the reduction of the requirements being placed on it. Now, far too often, as the noble Lord, Lord Kirkhope, pointed out, they are putting out the same music that you can hear on any other station. We need to look at ways of regaining genuine local radio that covers local news issues, holds local politicians to account and tells the stories that involve local people. That, sadly, is being diminished in this country. The addition of the small-scale multiplex and the possibility that that brings for new entrants is of course very welcome. It is one of the reasons I support this order, but of course there are other huge benefits in the order in that it will save the readvertising costs that would be incurred.