Asked by: Lord Dubs (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 effect of the licence fee settlement on BBC news and current affairs programmes.
Answered by Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay - Shadow Minister (Culture, Media and Sport)
In 2022, His Majesty’s Government agreed a settlement with the BBC which saw the licence fee remain at £159 until 2024 to protect licence-fee-payers from inflationary pressures, and then rise in line with inflation until the end of 2027 when the BBC’s current Royal Charter is due for renewal.
HM Government will use the annual rate of inflation as calculated by the Consumer Prices Index (CPI) in September 2023 to calculate the licence fee uplift in April 2024. This decision will ensure the additional cost to licence-fee-payers is kept as low as possible while giving the BBC over £3.8 billion in annual licence fee funding to spend on world-leading content and to deliver on its mission as set out in its Royal Charter: to serve all audiences with impartial, high-quality, and distinctive output and services which inform, educate, and entertain.
The BBC is operationally and editorially independent of the Government and decides how it delivers its services, including its news and current affairs programming. We are, however, clear that the BBC must deliver its remit to serve all audiences with impartial, high-quality, and distinctive output and services which inform, educate, and entertain. The Royal Charter makes clear that the BBC has a vital role to play in enabling all audiences to engage fully with major local, regional, national, and global issues, and to participate in the democratic process, at all levels. The Government expects Ofcom, as the BBC’s regulator, to ensure that the Corporation is robustly held to account in delivering its public service duty.
Asked by: Lord Dubs (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they will introduce legislation to provide the Digital Markets Unit with statutory powers in the next parliamentary session.
Answered by Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay - Shadow Minister (Culture, Media and Sport)
The Government consulted on our proposed approach to a new pro-competition regime, overseen by the Digital Markets Unit, last year. The consultation closed in October, and we are carefully considering the responses. We will set out the final design of the regime in our response shortly, and will introduce legislation as soon as parliamentary time allows.
Asked by: Lord Dubs (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to ensure a level playing field is established by legislative and regulatory means to allow UK news publishers to negotiate for proper and fair payment by technology companies for the news content they generate.
Answered by Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay - Shadow Minister (Culture, Media and Sport)
Newspapers play an invaluable role in the fabric of our society and the Government is committed to considering all possible options in the interest of supporting the sustainability of the press. We understand concerns about the effect of the power and position of some online platforms when dealing with news publishers, as was identified by the Cairncross Review.
The Government set out its proposals for a new pro-competition regime for digital markets in a public consultation in July 2021. The regime will drive a more vibrant and innovative economy across the UK. In line with codes proposed in the Cairncross Review, the regime’s conduct requirements will improve competition and transparency and make an important contribution to the sustainability of the press. We have also sought advice from the Competition and Markets Authority and Ofcom on how the regime would govern the relationship between platforms and content producers including news publishers. No final decisions have been made.
A consultation response will be published in due course and we will legislate to put the regime on a statutory footing as soon as parliamentary time allows.
Asked by: Lord Dubs (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking (1) to support the establishment of a Digital Markets Unit within the Competition and Markets Authority, (2) to provide the necessary financial support for the recruitment of personnel to the new Digital Markets Unit, and (3) to ensure the new Digital Markets Unit has the necessary powers to intervene on a statutory basis.
Answered by Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay - Shadow Minister (Culture, Media and Sport)
The Government established a new non-statutory Digital Markets Unit (DMU), housed within the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), in April 2021 to begin to put into effect the pro-competition regime. We will legislate to put the Digital Markets Unit on a statutory footing as soon as parliamentary time allows.
At the recent Spending Review, the Government agreed to provide the CMA with an additional £20 million by 2024-25 to support the dedicated Digital Markets Unit and other CMA functions.
The DMU will have a range of powers to monitor and enforce the regime. The focus of the regime will be on resolving concerns through constructive engagement with firms, without the need for formal investigations. The DMU will need, however, robust powers to deter and tackle non-compliance. We set out our proposals for these powers in our 2021 consultation, and will publish our response to that consultation in due course.