Committee
Education and Culture Committee 12 January 2016
12 Jan 2016 · S4 · Education and Culture Committee
Item of business
BBC Charter Renewal
Lord Hall
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Let me just add something on the process that Ken MacQuarrie has just outlined. We were looking at ways in which we could—had we the opportunity—suggest that the licence fee go up by more than inflation in order to fulfil a number of ambitions that we have right across the piece, including in Scotland. After the settlement with the Chancellor of the Exchequer in July, we had to say what priorities really mattered to us. At this point, I stress that this is not a case of BBC Scotland versus London. Between us, we have been talking about this a lot, but we had to ask ourselves what are the priorities for the BBC in Scotland. After talking with Ken MacQuarrie and others—and going back to my opening comments—I think that the priority for Scotland is the production of drama and other things both for the network and for the globe. Of course, that is part of the debate, but we thought that we should put our money more into that than into things such as a linear channel. Secondly, we were also thinking about the future of broadcasting. I believe that channels will be important for a long time into the future; after all, BBC One is doing remarkably well, and it is the way of getting to as many people as possible in Scotland and across the UK. However, you can see that in certain areas people, particularly our younger audiences, want what they want on demand—wherever they are and whenever. In so far as we can prioritise our spending, what we do in the nations is clearly important. However, as Ken MacQuarrie said, we also need to think about how we ensure that the audiences of the future can have the content that they want where they want it. That applies to younger audiences in particular, but it includes many of us, too. In that respect, it seems that building an online channel is important.
In the same item of business
The Convener
SNP
Our next item is to take evidence on the BBC charter renewal process. Before we get on to that, I have to inform members that we invited the BBC trust to at...
Lord Hall of Birkenhead (BBC)
Thank you convener, and thank you for inviting us to the committee today. As director general of the BBC, I want to achieve a strong and vibrant BBC Scotlan...
The Convener
SNP
Thank you for those opening remarks. I very much welcome the review of the news service that you mentioned, and the web and iPlayer changes. I want to put t...
Ken MacQuarrie (BBC)
As we were running up to the charter renewal, across the BBC we had a number of groups of which BBC Scotland was a part, and all the divisions put forward a ...
The Convener
SNP
As I understand it, BBC Scotland presented a forward-looking and ambitious plan for the future of BBC Scotland. Will you tell us what it contained?
Ken MacQuarrie
Among the various plans that we put forward was consideration of whether to deal with the audience through an online offer and whether a linear channel is th...
The Convener
SNP
I am sorry, but I am asking you specifically about BBC Scotland. Are you saying that the document that you put forward contained a range of options and open ...
Ken MacQuarrie
We never reached the stage of having a formal “document”, as you describe it. What we had was a number of ideas. We had a preference at one stage for examini...
The Convener
SNP
Will you clarify that? Are you saying that you did not have a document?
Ken MacQuarrie
We did not submit a formal plan within the BBC’s formal structures. It was part of the overall creative process of charter renewal which was—
The Convener
SNP
How did you let the BBC in London know what your plans were? Did you just phone them up? 10:45
Ken MacQuarrie
No. We met in various groups from various divisions, and all the divisions put forward what was, at the outset, a fairly broad range of options. That was how...
The Convener
SNP
I am going to stick with the word “plan”. What happened to the plan that you put forward to the BBC for the future of BBC Scotland?
Ken MacQuarrie
In our discussion, we looked at the various options. That was when the BBC’s financial envelope had been made clear. We looked at the options and, at that st...
The Convener
SNP
Chic, do you have a question?
Chic Brodie
SNP
My question is simply this, convener: where is the written plan?
Ken MacQuarrie
As I have said, we do not have a formal document as such—
Chic Brodie
SNP
You must have had some basis for your discussion.
Ken MacQuarrie
We had a basis for the discussion—
Chic Brodie
SNP
So where is that plan?
Ken MacQuarrie
The basis for the discussion was, essentially, the options, which included online delivery for Scotland, a linear channel and so on. That was the range of op...
The Convener
SNP
You are leading with the online issue, but I had understood that the plan dealt with an awful lot more than that, and included the possibility of a new telev...
Ken MacQuarrie
One of the options that we looked at was a second service on Radio Scotland, and we also looked at the balance of advantage with regard to a radio service ve...
The Convener
SNP
Did the options include the things that I have mentioned—for example, devolution of commissioning and budget?
Ken MacQuarrie
The question where commissioning should sit—what should be commissioned pan-UK, if you like, and what should be commissioned from London—was one that we look...
The Convener
SNP
I will take that as a yes. Director general, what happened to the plan that was presented to you—in whatever format it was put forward?
Lord Hall
Let me just add something on the process that Ken MacQuarrie has just outlined. We were looking at ways in which we could—had we the opportunity—suggest that...
The Convener
SNP
I would have thought that both things were important: it is not about one versus the other. Why is it important to have UK channels such as BBC One, BBC Two,...
Lord Hall
That goes back to resources again, and how best we can use the resources that we have. The committee knows what the settlement is for the BBC. We have to abs...
Gordon MacDonald (Edinburgh Pentlands) (SNP)
SNP
Apologies for my voice—I am just coming out of a cold, so I am a bit croaky. Tony, if my understanding of your comments is correct, you are indicating that ...