§
Motion made, and Question proposed,
That a Supplementary sum, not exceeding£50,000, be granted to His Majesty, to defray the charge which will come in course of payment during the year ending on the 31st day of March, 1939, for a grant to the British Broadcasting Corporation.
§ 8.59 p.m.
§ The Assistant Postmaster-General (Sir Walter Womersley)I am sure that my colleagues on the Front Bench will envy me my task in introducing this non-controversial Supplementary Estimate. I am not asking the Committee to provide more money; I am merely asking to be allowed to make a readjustment of the amount to the British Broadcasting Corporation. If they will look at the Estimate on page 18, they will find the explanation given. The sale of wireless receiving licences for the year ending 31st March, 1939, is now expected to exceed the figure on which the original Estimate was based. In other words, it is a purely automatic increase and does not provide for any increase in the percentage allotted to the B.B.C. Under Section 20 of the Agreement which was made with the B.B.C. 75 per cent. of the net licence revenue, after deducting the Post Office share of 9 per cent. for collection and other expenses, is payable to the B.B.C. Under the same Section the B.B.C. may receive such additional percentage of the net licence revenue as the Treasury may deem necessary for developing the services. In the original Estimate, 15 per cent. was provided for the Treasury for that purpose, which is to assist the B.B.C. to develop the television services and also the foreign language 1855 broadcasting services. It was originally estimated that there would be 8,800,000 licences in force by 31st March, and 75 per cent. of the net licence revenue, that would amount to £,3,030,000, with an additional 15 per cent. voted by this House to £610,000, making a total of£3,640,000. This is one of the penalties of success, and I have to come to the Committee to ask them to allow me to alter the estimate of the number of licences to 9,000,000, which is what we estimate now will be the total number, with the result that an additional £41,500 will be required to meet the 75 per cent. share, the arrangement under the agreement, and an additional £8,500 to meet the 15 per cent. share which was agreed to by the House some time ago. It is only a matter of adjustment. More people have taken out licences than was anticipated, and the percentage grant to the B.B.C. must, of course, be increased, otherwise we should not be keeping our bargain with them. It is necessary to ask the permission of the Committee to allow this money to be paid over.
§ Question put, and agreed to.