§ Mr. Simon ThomasTo ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what assessment he has made of the impact of the efficiency savings he asked the BBC to make on spending by the BBC on provision of digital services in Welsh. [154256]
§ Janet AndersonNone. Such an assessment would be a matter for the BBC's Board of Governors who are responsible for ensuring that the BBC meets the requirements of its Royal Charter and Agreement and any commitments made by the Corporation, including commitments on services for Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland and the English regions.
§ Mr. Simon ThomasTo ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what assessment he has made of the future budgetary needs of S4C to meet the demands of expanding programming required by converting to digital television. [154255]
§ Janet AndersonThe Department for Culture, Media and Sport last year considered a bid for additional funding for S4C, following the Authority's assessment of its future budgetary needs. Departmental spending limits and competing priorities precluded our meeting the bid, but annual increases in S4C's grant in line with the Retail Prices Index, under the provisions of the Broadcasting Act 1996, are maintaining the real value of the grant. The
169W1996 Act has also given S4C the power to develop commercial services, enabling it to generate additional revenue to supplement its public service fund.