HL Deb 15 May 1986 vol 474 cc1278-9
The Lord President of the Council (Viscount Whitelaw)

My Lords, I beg to move the first Motion standing in my name on the Order Paper.

Moved, That pursuant to the Resolution of the House of 12th May instant and certain recommendations made in the report of the Select Committee on Televising the Proceedings of the House:

  1. (1) the British Broadcasting Corporation and the Independent Broadcasting Authority ("the television authorities") be authorised to provide and operate singly or jointly cameras and other equipment required for the purpose of televising the proceedings of the House and of certain of its committees, subject to the directions of the House or a committee empowered to give such directions ("the committee");
  2. (2) the television authorities may supply television pictures made pursuant to this resolution to other television organisations, and shall supply them to any other organisation whose request for such a facility shall have been granted by the committee, on such conditions as the committee may determine;
  3. (3) no television pictures made pursuant to this resolution shall be used by the television authorities, or by any organisation supplied with such pictures, in light entertainment programmes or programmes designed as political satire; nor shall any film, tape, video cassette or other device making use of such television pictures be published unless the committee shall have satisfied themselves that it is not designed for such entertainment or satire;
  4. (4) tapes of all proceedings of the House which have been broadcast by the television authorities shall be supplied by them to the House for archive purposes, in a form to be decided by the committee, who shall also determine which such tapes should be permanently preserved.—(Viscount Whitelaw.)

Viscount Whitelaw

My Lords, your Lordships will recall that at the conclusion of Monday's debate on the Motion of my noble friend Lord Boyd-Carpenter to continue the televising of our proceedings I undertook to move as soon as was practicable the Motions which would be necessary to enable this to happen. This first Motion empowers the television authorites to televise and sets out certain criteria to be observed. It follows very closely the Motion of 28th July 1977 under which the sound broadcasting of the House's proceedings has been conducted with, naturally, appropriate modifications. My Lords, I beg to move.

On Question, Motion agreed to.