§ Mr. Hardyasked the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry why class B radio amateurs will be allowed to 200W practise the use of morse code on 144 MHz only by arrangement with, and on payment to, the Radio Society of Great Britain; and why the normal practice of gazetting such a change has not been followed.
§ Mr. ButcherAGazette notice is only one of the ways in which an amateur licence may be varied; it is the method usually adopted where large scale and permanent amendments are required. In this case applicants are issued with a notice of variation which enables the Department to keep a record of the numbers participating in this experiment and their locations in the event of interference arising. The experiment covers all the class B amateur bands and not just 144 MHz.
The arrangement whereby the Radio Society of Great Britain issues the notices on behalf of the Secretary of State is the most cost-effective and administratively convenient. The payment by applicants of two first class postage stamps is to cover costs and postage incurred by the society.