Media Green Paper Debate
Full Debate: Read Full DebateDepartment: Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport
Ann Davies
Main Page: Ann Davies (Plaid Cymru - Caerfyrddin)Department Debates - View all Ann Davies's debates with the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport
Media Green Paper
Ann Davies Excerpts(1 month, 1 week ago)
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Lisa Nandy
I am very happy to do so, and the hon. Gentleman is right to mention the importance of local radio.
Ann Davies (Caerfyrddin) (PC)
I thank the Secretary of State for her informed answers. The new media Green Paper highlights the importance of continued universal access to good-quality, trusted television. Part of maintaining that access is making the content in the first place. With the news that the BBC Cymru Wales will face £9 million in spending cuts by the end of 2027-28, it is inevitable that Welsh commissions, already on the decrease, will decline even further. How will the Secretary of State protect Welsh-language content from such sweeping cuts, especially considering that access is already limited for us?
Lisa Nandy
I was recently at the BBC in Cardiff. The importance of Welsh-language content is not lost on this Government, and I have discussed the matter with both the interim director general and the new director general. We have been very keen to impress on the BBC the importance of protecting a regional footprint across all our nations and regions—something pioneered by former director general Tim Davie. Through the charter review process, we are ambitious for more power and funding to be dispersed out of London, so that the BBC becomes the engine of the nations and regions, producing content that reflects all our nations and regions, not just some parts of the country.