HC Deb 03 December 1980 vol 995 cc106-7W
Mr. Rees-Davies

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he is yet able to make a statement about an independent local radio station to serve East Kent.

Mr. Whitelaw

In my reply to a question by my hon. Friend the Member for Aldershot (Mr. Critchley) on 15 November last year—[Vol. 973, c. 707–8]—I announced that I had accepted in principle the need for an ILR station in East Kent but that I wished to consider further its location and coverage. Since then, the Independent Broadcasting Authority has completed a technical investigation into the practicalities of providing such a service and has put forward a proposal for providing an ILR station for East Kent, from three pairs of transmitters—each pair consisting of a vhf and an mf transmitter—in the Canterbury, Dover and Thanet areas. I have approved this proposal.

In addition, the authority hopes eventually, when frequencies become available, to add a relay station in order to extend the East Kent ILR service into the Ashford area.