§ Mr. AllenTo ask the Lord President of the Council what statutory obligations there are upon cable companies relating to the provision of the Parliamentary Channel. [15403]
§ Mr. NewtonThere is no statutory obligation on cable companies to carry the Parliamentary Channel.
The Parliamentary Channel is provided by United Artists. United Artists is a shareholder in PARBUL, the company which is responsible for providing all television coverage from the Chamber of the House of Commons, the Chamber of the House of Lords and Committees of both Houses. United Artists provides a service to cable companies which is available to almost all those homes connected to broadband cable as part of the basic package of services provided by the local cable operator. The service is free to schools which are connected to broadband cable.