Plaid Cymru leader Ieuan Wyn Jones will today (Tuesday) say that he believes the time has come to devolve major parts of broadcasting to Wales.
In a keynote speech at the National Eisteddfod in Ebbw Vale later this morning, the Plaid leader will say that there are compelling economic, cultural and democratic reasons for transferring control over television and radio to Wales in the next Assembly term. He has pledged that he will put the devolution of broadcasting at the heart of his party’s manifesto next May.
The Plaid leader will also say that the dramatic fall in English-language output in Wales, the roll-out of digitisation and proposed cuts by the new UK Government are likely to subject television and radio in Wales to an even more challenging environment – threatening further an industry estimated to be worth around £300million per year.
Ieuan Wyn Jones will use his keynote speech to outline his party’s six-point plan for the devolving broadcasting, which includes the BBC, S4C and commercial TV and Radio, as well as creating an appropriate financial settlement for the services, which would include a reform of Barnett.
The Plaid leader hopes his speech will trigger wider discussion over the coming months. He believes that the devolution of broadcasting will provide significant opportunities to the nation – saying that the National Assembly should be given the powers to;
1. Set the budget of S4C.
2. Establish the terms of reference and aims of the Welsh language channel and protect its budget to ensure quality of production.
3. Establish, in the short-term, a Welsh BBC trust to ensure that its financial, editorial and strategic decisions are made in Wales, with the aim of providing a better service to audiences in Wales.
4. Establish formal structures to scrutinise the BBC, S4C and Channel4.
5. Control the distribution of FM frequencies in Wales, and ensure that new DAB stations such as Radio Wales and Radio Cymru are available throughout Wales.
6. Have a say in how the ITV licence is decided in Wales – the current digital economy bill only recognises England and Scotland as licence areas at the moment.
Talking of the importance of this sector, the Plaid leader, who recently made the creative industries a key part of his new Economic Renewal Programme will say;
“The report from Professor Hargreaves, which has been endorsed by the Government, highlights the essential role that broadcasting plays as a trigger for Welsh businesses. It’s a shop window for Wales across the world, as well as being a vital cultural asset in its own right.
“Currently around £300 million is spent each year on the creative industries in Wales. Around £250 million of this comes from BBC and S4C spending, with the rest coming from government spending. Hargreaves makes it clear that broadcasting – and he saw S4C as vital because its commissioning work from independent companies – is a key driver in a sector vital to the Welsh economy.”
In his speech, the Plaid leader will also say that events over the past few years have highlighted the inability of London-based broadcasters to provide an adequate service for Welsh audiences;
“On BBC Wales, the Welsh-made output has fallen from 824 hours to 696. More worryingly, news and current affair output has fallen from 500 to 420. On top of this, BBC spending on English-language programmes in Wales fell from £26.8 million to £23.6 million between 2005 and 2009 – at a time when the licence fee increased. The lack of priority and understanding the BBC gave to the devolved nations in their recent strategic document gives further serious cause for concern.”
“Things are even worse in ITV Wales, where Welsh-made output fell by 32% over this period. Programming, excluding news and current affairs, has been reduced from 169 hours a year to 35 hours now.”
With such economic and cultural importance to Wales, the Plaid leader believes that broadcasting cannot be simply left to control of London, especially with clear signs coming from the UK Government that cuts are planned for both the BBC and S4C:
“Now that the intentions of the coalition in London have become apparent, and we in Wales face real cuts in broadcasting, it’s even more important now for our nation to secure more power over this important field.
“S4C isn’t devolved and the BBC isn’t accountable to the people of Wales for the way it spends the licence fee here.
“Broadcasting in Wales is under attack from the UK government, which is clearly looking for easy targets for big cuts – and what better target to many of them than S4C and the BBC?
“This all means one thing. Without swift action, it’s possible we will see further erosion in our broadcasting institutions and the whole nation will be poorer for it.”
The Plaid leader believes that taking control of broadcasting would give Wales the opportunity to deliver better programming and accountability for Welsh audiences;
“On the whole, there needs to be a flexible structure capable of adapting more quickly to a rapidly-changing industry. No Government is usually known for its flexibility, but I believe the Welsh Government is a much more suitable place than Westminster to try to answer the challenges this industry faces from a Welsh perspective.”
“It’s time for us to take responsibility and ownership – and therefore ensure broadcasting in our country is answerable to Welsh audiences and tax-payers.”
