§ Mr. BestTo ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport (1) what steps she is taking to ensure that television and radio channels broadcasting in the United Kingdom maintain political impartiality; [131975]
(2) what actions she is taking to ensure that television and radio channels in the UK maintain political impartiality. [132227]
§ Estelle MorrisThe Government strongly supports impartiality in the broadcast media and there are relevant provisions in legislation to ensure that television and radio channels broadcasting in the UK maintain political impartiality.
Responsibility for what is broadcast on television and radio rests with the broadcasters and the broadcasting regulatory bodies—the Governors of the BBC, the Independent Television Commission, the Welsh Fourth Channel Authority and the Radio Authority. The regulators' codes of practice place a requirement on broadcasters to treat controversial subjects with due accuracy and impartiality, both in news services and in the more general field of programmes dealing with matters of current public policy or industrial controversy. It is for the regulatory bodies, not Government, to decide whether any particular broadcaster is or is not complying with its obligations regarding impartiality.
Under the Communications Act 2003 the Office of Communications (Ofcom) will have similar responsibilities for maintaining impartiality from the end of this year. The BBC Governors will retain their responsibility, under the Charter and Agreement, for maintaining the BBC's impartiality.