PARLIAMENTARY EARLY DAY MOTION
ITV AND REGIONAL NEWS (6 December 2007)

That this House celebrates the contribution of ITV Regional News to the DNA of ITV, providing programming that strongly reflects the cultural and social lives of the UK regions; reflects that regional news has been a key obligation of the Channel 3 licence holder since its launch in 1954; notes comments by the Select Committee on Culture, Media and Sport that `in the interests of plurality it would be regrettable if regional news in any area were to become solely the preserve of the BBC'; recognises that Ofcom's first public service broadcasting (PSB) review concluded that the existing commercial PSB model would not be sustainable following digital switchover but also notes Michael Grade's comments in June 2007 that `if ITV got an advertising credit for its national and regional programmes ... Immediately ITV would have an added incentive to invest in programming for the nations and regions'; strongly opposes the Chairman of ITV's precipitate plan announced in September 2007 to cut regional news budgets from £90 million today to £40 to £50 million in the future, reduce regions from 17 (11 regions and six sub regions) to nine and merge distinct areas such as Tyne Tees with Border, West and West Country, East and West Midlands, the Meridian and Thames Valley; and calls on Ofcom and the Government to work together with ITV to find a solution that enables ITV to generate sufficient income to maintain a regional news network of which both the country and our regions are rightly proud.

Sponsored by:
John Grogan (Labour)