§ Mr. VazTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) if he will make a statement on the new franchises which the shadow Radio Authority has advertised for in respect of(a) the numbers of franchises to be issued and (b) the date when the franchises are to take effect;
(2) if he will make a statement on the recent announcement by the Independent Broadcasting Authority that it is inviting letters of intent for new radio franchises.
§ Mr. MellorThe shadow Radio Authority has invited letters of intent from prospective licensees to assist in the process of drawing up a plan for the introduction of new independent stations. This exercise will give the authority an indication of the geographical spread of demand for new services, and the nature of that demand. The number of new licences which will be advertised in due course will be determined by factors such as local audience demand, financial viability, frequency availability and the extent to which the range and diversity of listener choice would be enhanced. In the course of the 1990s several hundred new services of various sizes could gradually emerge across the country. Advertising of licences for specific services will start when the Radio Authority is formally established in January 1991, if Parliament approves the provisions of the Broadcasting Bill.
§ Mr. VazTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what is the proposed licence fee for the radio stations franchised by the shadow Radio Authority.
§ Mr. MellorUnder the provisions of the Broadcasting Bill the Radio Authority will be expected to receive its income from licence fee revenue. The authority aims to operate a differential scale of fees for the various services which it will license, but has yet to determine what those fees should be. We propose to amend the Broadcasting Bill in order to require the Radio Authority to publish its tariff of licence fees.