Asked by: Baroness Kennedy of Cradley (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the success of commercial radio in the UK.
Answered by Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
His Majesty’s Government strongly supports a vibrant radio sector, including national and local commercial stations as well as community stations and the BBC, which between them provide a rich variety of choice for listeners across the UK.
The UK’s commercial radio sector now accounts for approximately 55% of radio listening in the UK, according to figures published by RAJAR for Quarter 4 2023, with 39 million people tuning in to national or local commercial stations at least once a week. This compares to 42% of radio listening and 34 million listeners in Quarter 4 2013. The growth in commercial radio listening over the past 10 years is thanks to the investment the sector has made to develop and grow new services and its ability to adapt what it offers to listeners on digital radio or via internet-connected devices such as smart speakers.
The measures in the Media Bill to reduce regulatory burdens on commercial radio and to secure protections for the carriage of radio on smart speaker devices are intended to help support and secure commercial radio’s long-term future.
Written Evidence Feb. 21 2024
Inquiry: The future of news: impartiality, trust and technologyFound: BACKGROUND: NEWS AND INFORMATION ON COMMERCIAL RADIO 7.UK radio listeners are well served by a diverse
Mentions:
1: Andy Carter (Con - Warrington South) by commercial operators. - Speech Link
2: Damian Green (Con - Ashford) when I am on TV or radio. - Speech Link
3: Andy Carter (Con - Warrington South) The combined weekly audience for all BBC and commercial radio in the UK remains extremely healthy. - Speech Link
4: Julia Lopez (Con - Hornchurch and Upminster) In particular, that should include commercial radio stations and local newspapers, especially when it - Speech Link
Mentions:
1: None The present national grouping of most commercial radio stations compounds the leeching of resources away - Speech Link
2: Lord Vaizey of Didcot (Con - Life peer) services that commercial radio cannot afford to provide. - Speech Link
3: Lord Foster of Bath (LD - Life peer) The free flow of data is crucial—for commercial radio, community radio and even the BBC—in order to create - Speech Link
Nov. 17 2023
Source Page: I. Media Bill: memorandum from the Department for Culture, Media and Sport to the Delegated Powers and Regulatory Reform Committee. 53p. II. ECHR memorandum for the Media Bill as introduced into the House of Commons. 15p. III. Media Bill: Overarching Impact Assessment. Incl. Annexes A (Governance and Regulatory Reform), B (Repeal of Section 40 of the Crime and Courts Act 2013) and C (Commercial radio de-regulation De Minimis Assessment) (4 docs.) IV. A principles-based framework for a new prominence regime for PSB online services. 59p. V. Modernising the UK’s system of public service broadcasting: Impact Assessment. 59p. VI. Regulation of radio services across voice assistant platforms: Impact Assessment. 91p. VII. Video-on-Demand Regulation and Accessibility Impact Assessments. (2 docs.) VIII. Assessment of Impacts: The removal of Channel 4 Television Corporation (C4C)’s publisher-broadcaster restriction and accompanying mitigations. 33p. IX. Letter dated 08/11/2023 from Lucy Frazer MP to the Deposited Papers Clerk regarding documents relating to the Media Bill to be deposited in the House libraries. 1p.Found: Governance and Regulatory Reform), B (Repeal of Section 40 of the Crime and Courts Act 2013) and C (Commercial
Nov. 17 2023
Source Page: I. Media Bill: memorandum from the Department for Culture, Media and Sport to the Delegated Powers and Regulatory Reform Committee. 53p. II. ECHR memorandum for the Media Bill as introduced into the House of Commons. 15p. III. Media Bill: Overarching Impact Assessment. Incl. Annexes A (Governance and Regulatory Reform), B (Repeal of Section 40 of the Crime and Courts Act 2013) and C (Commercial radio de-regulation De Minimis Assessment) (4 docs.) IV. A principles-based framework for a new prominence regime for PSB online services. 59p. V. Modernising the UK’s system of public service broadcasting: Impact Assessment. 59p. VI. Regulation of radio services across voice assistant platforms: Impact Assessment. 91p. VII. Video-on-Demand Regulation and Accessibility Impact Assessments. (2 docs.) VIII. Assessment of Impacts: The removal of Channel 4 Television Corporation (C4C)’s publisher-broadcaster restriction and accompanying mitigations. 33p. IX. Letter dated 08/11/2023 from Lucy Frazer MP to the Deposited Papers Clerk regarding documents relating to the Media Bill to be deposited in the House libraries. 1p.Found: Governance and Regulatory Reform), B (Repeal of Section 40 of the Crime and Courts Act 2013) and C (Commercial
Jan. 22 2024
Source Page: BBC Mid-Term Review 2024Found: RADIO MARKET REMAINS STRONG, WITH INCREASED REVENUES DRIVEN BY NATIONAL COMMERCIAL RADIO Radio shares
Jun. 23 2008
Source Page: Interim report of the Digital Radio Working Group. 13 p.Found: Interim report of the Digital Radio Working Group. 13 p.
Asked by: Neil Hudson (Conservative - Penrith and The Border)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps her Department is taking to support local journalism.
Answered by Julia Lopez - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Government is committed to supporting local and regional newspapers and other news outlets as vital pillars of communities and local democracy. They play an essential role in holding power to account, keeping the public informed of local issues and providing reliable, high-quality information.
Amid an evolving media landscape and changes in consumer behaviour, we are working to support journalism and local newsrooms to ensure the sustainability of this important industry. We are introducing a new, pro-competition regime for digital markets. The regime, which aims to address the far-reaching power of the biggest tech firms, will help rebalance the relationship between publishers and the online platforms on which they increasingly rely. This will make an important contribution to the sustainability of the press.
Additionally, our support for the sector has included the delivery of a £2 million Future News Fund, the extension of a 2017 business rates relief on local newspaper office space until 2025; the publication of the Online Media Literacy Strategy; and our work through the Mid-Term Review of the BBC Charter to encourage greater collaboration and transparency from the BBC in the local news market and other markets in which it operates. The BBC also supports the sector directly, through the £8m it spends each year on the Local News Partnership, including the Local Democracy Reporting Scheme.
We are also reducing regulatory burdens on commercial radio providers, and strengthening requirements on the provision of local news through the Media Bill to ensure commercial radio continues to provide high quality local journalism.
We continue to consider all possible options in the interests of promoting and sustaining news journalism.
Written Evidence Feb. 19 2024
Committee: Public Accounts CommitteeFound: In October 2022, the BBC announced cuts to local radio, and the creation of 11 investigative reporting