HC Deb 18 May 1993 vol 225 c124W
Mr. Vaz

To ask the Secretary of State for National Heritage how many applications for licences have(a) been granted by the Radio Authority, (b) been rejected by the Radio Authority and (c) what is the cost of licence application.

Mr. Brooke

The number of licences granted in any year by the Radio Authority are published in the annual report. On two occasions, the Radio Authority has decided not to award a local radio licence which it had advertised. The cost of a licence application fee varies according to the type of licence and the extent of the population coverage.

Mr. Vaz

To ask the Secretary of State for National Heritage how many licences the Radio Authority has granted; and what is the current licence fee.

Mr. Brooke

The Radio Authority's annual report for 1992 will be published soon and will give figures for the licences it issued during that year. By 11 January 1993, I understand that the Radio Authority had, since it was established, awarded two licences for national services, 25 local licences, 419 restricted service licences, eight licences for licensable sound programme services and 11 satellite licences. The authority also licensed 126 local radio services, which had earlier operated under contract to the Independent Broadcasting Authority. Licence fees are charged according to a tariff, published by the authority, which relates to the number of potential listeners for each service.

Mr. Vaz

To ask the Secretary of State for National Heritage when the Radio Authority is going to make a decision about the west midlands franchise.

Mr. Brooke

The Radio Authority advertised the licence for the regional ILR service for the west midlands on 18 March. The closing date for applications is 6 July. The Radio Authority expects to announce who has been granted the licence by October 1993.

Mr. Vaz

To ask the Secretary of State for National Heritage how many franchises have been awarded by the Radio Authority.

Mr. Brooke

The Radio Authority does not award franchises. The annual report of the Radio Authority gives figures for the number of licences issued each year.