Asked by: Jesse Norman (Conservative - Hereford and South Herefordshire)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what estimate her Department has made of the projected cash return from the privatisation of Channel 4; and on what assumptions that projection has been made.
Answered by Julia Lopez - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
Channel 4 has a strong reputation for innovative and diverse content, a proactive strategy to be a digital first provider, and huge popularity with a range of audiences, including valuable younger audiences. The Government expects this will appeal to a broad range of different purchasers.
As with the sale of any government asset, any sale of Channel 4 will involve a careful assessment process to ensure value for money for the taxpayer.
Asked by: Jesse Norman (Conservative - Hereford and South Herefordshire)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what her Department's valuation is of Channel 4 as of 9 June 2022; and on what assumptions that valuation has been made.
Answered by Julia Lopez - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
Channel 4 has a strong reputation for innovative and diverse content, a proactive strategy to be a digital first provider, and huge popularity with a range of audiences, including valuable younger audiences. The Government expects this will appeal to a broad range of different purchasers.
As with the sale of any government asset, any sale of Channel 4 will involve a careful assessment process to ensure value for money for the taxpayer.
Asked by: Jesse Norman (Conservative - Hereford and South Herefordshire)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, in what way her Department intends to treat the revenue from any sale of Channel 4.
Answered by Julia Lopez - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Government will look to use some of the proceeds from the sale of Channel 4 to deliver a new creative dividend for the independent production sector.
Asked by: Jesse Norman (Conservative - Hereford and South Herefordshire)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what estimate her Department has made of the projected (a) economic and (b) social returns from the privatisation of Channel 4; and on what assumptions those projections have been made.
Answered by Julia Lopez - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Government consulted extensively on the future of Channel 4, and the views and evidence gathered from a wide range of stakeholders has informed the Government’s assessment of any potential impact of a change of ownership. The Government published its sale impact analysis on 28 April.
Asked by: Mark Tami (Labour - Alyn and Deeside)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of privatising Channel 4 on the independent television sector in (a) Alyn and Deeside constituency and (b) the UK.
Answered by Julia Lopez - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Government consulted extensively on the future of Channel 4, and the views and evidence gathered from a wide range of stakeholders across the UK has informed the government’s assessment of any potential impact of a change of ownership. The Government published its sale impact analysis on 28 April.
Channel 4 has done an excellent job in supporting the UK production sector and thereby delivering on one of its founding purposes. Forty years on, independent production in the UK is now booming, with revenues having grown from £500 million in 1995 to £3 billion in 2019. Companies are increasingly less reliant on Channel 4 for commissions - only 7 per cent of the UK’s independent production sector revenues come from Channel 4 commissions.
Channel 4 still has an important part to play in supporting the sector and our wider creative economy. Channel 4 will still be required to commission a minimum volume of programming from independent producers, in line with the quotas placed on other PSBs, and Channel 4’s existing obligations in terms of regional production outside of London and England will also be maintained.
Channel 4 has excellent relationships with independent producers right across the UK and there is no reason this should change. The Government expects a new owner to want to build on and develop those relationships.
The Government believes that in the long run the UK production ecosystem will benefit from a more sustainable Channel 4. A change of ownership that improves Channel 4’s access to capital could increase spending on production. For example, Channel 5’s overall content budget increased following its acquisition by Viacom in 2014, with first-run spending up by an average of 7% per year between 2014 and 2018.
Asked by: Paul Girvan (Democratic Unionist Party - South Antrim)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what recent progress her Department has made on the future of Channel 4.
Answered by Julia Lopez - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Government set out its plans to deliver a new golden age of British TV and to and to help the nation’s public service broadcasters (PSBs) thrive in a White Paper, published on 28 April 2022.
Channel 4 is a major pillar of these plans to safeguard the future of public service broadcasting. Following an extensive consultation, the Secretary of State has come to the conclusion that, in today’s intensely competitive broadcast economy, public ownership is holding Channel 4 back.
Channel 4 is and will remain a free-to-air PSB, just like ITV, Channel 5 and STV which are privately-owned and hugely successful. But the government will remove the restriction which effectively prohibits Channel 4 from producing and selling its own content so it can diversify its revenue streams and improve its long-term sustainability.
Whoever buys the broadcaster will inherit equivalent obligations to what it is subject to now as a Public Service Broadcaster - a requirement to support regional production outside London and England, commission a minimum volume of shows from independent producers, and to provide news as well as the original, innovative and risk-taking content it is known and loved for.
The Government will look to use some of the proceeds from the sale of Channel 4 to deliver a new creative dividend for the sector.
The Government will bring forward legislation to enable a change of ownership of Channel 4 through the Media Bill announced in the Queen’s Speech.
Asked by: Baroness Hodgson of Abinger (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what discussions they have had, if any, with the government of India, regarding the introduction of the Youth Mobility Scheme between that country and the UK.
Answered by Baroness Williams of Trafford - Captain of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen-at-Arms (HM Household) (Chief Whip, House of Lords)
Her Majesty’s Government maintains regular dialogue with the Government of India on the introduction of the Youth Mobility Scheme (branded the India Young Professionals Scheme), a joint commitment included in the Migration and Mobility Partnership agreement signed between the UK and India on 4 May 2021. In addition, the agreement established an official channel for dialogue on all matters concerning implementation of the partnership agreement, the Joint Working Group.
Asked by: Emily Thornberry (Labour - Islington South and Finsbury)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to the oral evidence to the Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Select Committee on 19 May, if she will provide the source of the opinion poll that stated 53 per cent of the UK public were unaware that Channel 4 is currently in public ownership.
Answered by Julia Lopez - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The polling cited by the Secretary of State was conducted by the consultants Redfield and Wilton who found that 53% of people thought Channel 4 was privately owned.
Asked by: Chris Elmore (Labour - Ogmore)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, when the Government plans to publish the responses in full to the consultation on a change of ownership of Channel 4 Television Corporation.
Answered by Julia Lopez - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Government consulted extensively on a change of ownership of Channel 4, and the views and evidence gathered from a wide range of stakeholders has informed the government’s assessment of any potential impact of a change of ownership.
The Government will publish a sale impact analysis shortly. It will also publish its response to the consultation. This will include a summary of the responses received.
Asked by: Chris Elmore (Labour - Ogmore)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, whether a full impact assessment was carried out before the decision was made to privatise Channel 4.
Answered by Julia Lopez - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Government consulted extensively on a change of ownership of Channel 4, and the views and evidence gathered from a wide range of stakeholders has informed the government’s assessment of any potential impact of a change of ownership.
The Government will publish a sale impact analysis shortly. It will also publish its response to the consultation. This will include a summary of the responses received.