INDEPENDENT BROADCASTING AUTHORITY (LOCAL AND COMMUNITY RADIO) (Hansard, 26 July 1978)

§ Mr. Archie Hamilton (Epsom and Ewell)
I beg to move, That leave be given to bring in a Bill to make further provision with respect to the duty of the Independent Broadcasting Authority to provide local sound broadcasting services; and to make consequential provision in connection with those services. Such is the topicality of the Bill that it could be treated as an extension of the question-and-answer session that we have just had.
The purpose of the Bill is to get immediate action—I stress "immediate"—because there is a feeling by hon. Members on both sides of the House that we must move at once, to implement the recommendations of both the Annan report and the Government's statement today on broadcasting, to license local radio stations in all parts of the country.
I am sure that I shall have the support of the hon. Member for Derby, North (Mr. Whitehead) for the second purpose of the Bill, which is to create a second tier of small radio stations to serve minority communities.
Local radio has proved to be extremely popular with the listening public. The existing 19 stations licensed by the IBA boast an audience of 13½ million adults per week. Independent local radio, because it is financed by advertising, has the advantage of providing people with what they want at no cost to the public purse. In order to provide a service for most listeners in the United Kingdom, we need another 21 independent radio stations.
Both the BBC and IBA engineers agree that the frequencies are available, and yet the Government have dragged their feet. People in many parts of the country are deprived of the service which they have shown they want and which can be provided at no cost to the Exchequer.
Local radio has proved that it can provide an up-to-date service not only of general interest but a specialist information service for local authorities, con- 1590 sumers, business men, farmers, air travellers and others. Hon. Members who listen to London's local radio stations will be aware of the excellent reports on traffic conditions and problems with flights in and out of London's airports. Local information often helps the emergency services to deal with floods, power cuts and other unforeseen problems.
Local radio has also provided advisory programmes to help people with personal matters such as legal and financial problems and how to find the best deal when shopping. Local radio also plays a valuable role in communicating with minority groups. Serious thought should be given to extending the concept of community radio to allow ethnic minorities in our cities to have their own radio stations. We could also consider broadcasting in other languages.
Local radio also provides a much-needed opportunity to local businesses to inform communities of the products and services that they offer. Many small businesses can afford to advertise only on local radio.
The most beneficial effect of local radio is that it fosters a sense of community, a sense of belonging and a sense of place in what is increasingly becoming an impersonal and disoriented world. One of the reasons why people feel so alienated from institutions and political processes—and, even more worrying, from their representatives in this House—is that they do not feel part of the democratic process. People are becoming more and more frustrated at being unable to express their views or to air their real grievances. Through phone-in and discussion programmes, local radio enables people to influence their local community leaders when issues of local importance are decided.
Most radio stations have far too large an area to have a genuine appeal to the local communities. In London, for example, two independent radio stations and the BBC local station have a potential audience of 10 million people. In no sense can that be described as a local community. In contrast Los Angeles, with a population of 6 million, has 30 local radio stations. New York, with a population of 8 million, has even more stations.
1591 I understand that there are no longer any serious technical problems to prevent a radio station operating with a low-power transmitter covering an area as small as one square mile. Frequencies can be provided by making greater use of the VHF waveband.
The Bill sets out to license more radio stations at an initial cost which is not prohibitive and at no expense to the taxpayer. At the moment, the shareholders' capital needed to set up an independent radio station is in excess of £250,000. Resources on that scale are not generally available in small local communities. With a cheaper rental fee from the IBA, and by using low-powered equipment, local radio stations could be launched for a few thousand pounds. Many different stations could serve the interests and foster the aspirations of many diverse and varied communities.
The Government's statement today that local radio will be extended is most welcome. But, we must ask, why so late? Was the Home Office instructed by the Minister not to issue the new frequencies, which it could have done easily? The excuse was that he was awaiting a decision on the fourth television channel. That is not acceptable. The two matters are totally separate.
Perhaps this Socialist Government are so prejudiced against private enterprise when it is clearly successful and profitable that the Minister was instructed to procrastinate. Who would have issued those instructions? Could it be the national executive of the Labour Party? Alternatively, could it be the Trades Union Congress or as a result of the views of Mr. Moss Evans, the leader of the Transport and General Workers' Union? Perhaps his views are prevailing, as was reported in The Times in February 1977, when it was stated: Mr. Evans considers that it is necessary to have real public control of television and radio 1592 in order to give the public freedom of expression. We all know what that means. Mr. Evans goes further and says that the TUC has already defined the instruments necessary to the attainment of these events. That is dangerous country. We have already seen how a Socialist Government are prepared to bow to union pressure even when it is in the interests of only a small minority of union members. For evidence of that we need look no further than the closed shop for journalists.

§ Mr. Ian Gow (Eastbourne)
And the Treasury branch.

§ Mr. Hamilton
I am afraid that this Government could be in danger of adopting the attitude of Mr. Brezhnev, who, when asked by a western reporter what he thought of the freedom of the press, replied: Such things should not be allowed to destroy the relationship of the trust and affection which must develop between a Socialist Government and its people. We need more local radio stations, if for no other reason than to ensure that the role allotted by Mr. Brezhnev to his media never becomes a reality here.