BBC REGIONAL TELEVISION SERVICES

Motion Text

That this House recognises the importance of regional television andradio, including that which is provided by the BBC; notes that the BBC Look East, West Regional TV News programme, broadcast as part of the main regional Look East TV programme at 18:30 and as a dedicated service at 20:00 and 22:25 each weekday, delivers a tailored service of local news to an audience of around three million people in Cambridgeshire, Northamptonshire, Hertfordshire, Bedfordshire and Buckinghamshire; further notes that it is likely to be cut and replaced with a regional programme with less local news; further notes that the BBC Oxford TV Sub-opt service is facing a similar fate despite serving around a million people across Oxfordshire, Buckinghamshire, Swindon and the Cotswolds; further notes that the BBC Channel Island TV service is also to be cut and the service replaced by mainland programming; deprecates the decision by the BBC to cut these vital local services and replace them with far broader coverage; and calls on the BBC to protect the vital role of BBC TV News for local communities such as the west of East Anglia.