§ Dr. GibsonTo ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what assessment he has made of the68W impact of the Granada/Anglia merger on the location of jobs in television production and quality of programme production. [149512]
§ Janet AndersonReorganisation of television production with Granada is a matter for the company itself. The licence commitments of ITV regional companies, which include obligations to provide high-quality programming, remain unaffected by changes in ownership. The recent White Paper, "A New Framework for Communications", announces that the new regulator, Ofcom, will be required to undertake a review of the regional obligations in each ITV licence whenever its ownership changes, and will be empowered to amend licence conditions to meet any concerns arising.