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202 Welsh Authority finances | |
(1) The Welsh Authority must not, whether directly or indirectly, impose charges | |
on persons— | |
(a) in respect of their reception or use in Wales of any of the Authority’s | |
public services; | 5 |
(b) in respect of their reception in Wales of any service consisting in the | |
provision of assistance for disabled people in relation to programmes | |
included in any one or more of those services; or | |
(c) in respect of their reception in Wales of any service (other than one | |
mentioned in paragraph (b)) which is an ancillary service in relation to | 10 |
any of the Authority’s public services provided in digital form. | |
(2) It shall be unlawful to impose a charge in contravention of subsection (1). | |
(3) The power of the Welsh Authority to do anything that appears to them to be | |
conducive or incidental to the carrying out of their functions includes power, | |
subject to subsection (4), to borrow money. | 15 |
(4) The Welsh Authority are not to borrow money except with the approval of the | |
Secretary of State. | |
(5) The consent of the Treasury is to be required for the giving of an approval for | |
the purposes of subsection (4). | |
(6) The Welsh Authority are to be liable to pay OFCOM such sums in respect of | 20 |
the carrying out by OFCOM of their functions in relation to the Authority as | |
may be— | |
(a) agreed from time to time between the Authority and OFCOM; or | |
(b) (in default of agreement) fixed by the Secretary of State. | |
(7) In section 61(4) of the 1990 Act (power of Secretary of State to increase amount | 25 |
of grant to the Welsh Authority), for “transmitting S4C and the service referred | |
to in section 57(1A)(a), by order” there shall be substituted— | |
“(a) providing services that are public services of the Authority | |
(within the meaning of section 202 of the Communications Act | |
2003), and | 30 |
(b) arranging for the broadcasting or distribution of those services, | |
by order”. | |
(8) In section 61A of the 1990 Act (the public service fund)— | |
(a) in subsection (2) (application of fund), for “their functions under | |
section 57(1) or (1A)(a)” there shall be substituted “their functions in | 35 |
relation to the provision of the services that are public services of the | |
Authority (within the meaning of section 202 of the Communications | |
Act 2003).”; and | |
(b) in subsection (4) (programmes to be broadcast first on S4C or S4C | |
Digital), for the words from “on S4C” onwards there shall be | 40 |
substituted “on a television programme service that is one of their | |
public services (within the meaning of section 202 of the | |
Communications Act 2003)”. | |
(9) In this section references to the Welsh Authority’s public services are | |
references to the following— | 45 |
(a) S4C; | |
(b) S4C Digital; and | |
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(c) the services the provision of which by the Authority is authorised by or | |
under section 200. | |
The Gaelic Media Service | |
203 The Gaelic Media Service | |
(1) The body established for the purposes of section 183 of the 1990 Act (financing | 5 |
of programmes in Gaelic out of the Gaelic Television Fund) is hereby renamed | |
Seirbheis nam Meadhanan Gàidhlig (the Gaelic Media Service). | |
(2) References in any instrument or other document to Comataidh Craolaidh | |
Gaidhlig or to the Gaelic Broadcasting Committee are to be construed | |
accordingly. | 10 |
(3) For subsection (4) of that section there shall be substituted— | |
“(3B) The functions of the Service shall be to secure that a wide and diverse | |
range of high quality programmes in Gaelic are broadcast or otherwise | |
transmitted so as to be available to persons in Scotland. | |
(4) The Service may— | 15 |
(a) make grants out of the Fund, or | |
(b) otherwise apply it, | |
for any of the purposes of carrying out their functions or for any | |
purpose connected with the carrying out of those functions. | |
(4A) In carrying out their functions, the Service may finance, or engage in, | 20 |
any of the following— | |
(a) the making of programmes in Gaelic with a view to those | |
programmes being broadcast or otherwise transmitted so as to | |
be available to persons in Scotland; | |
(b) the provision of training for persons employed, or to be | 25 |
employed, in connection with the making of programmes in | |
Gaelic to be so broadcast or otherwise transmitted; | |
(c) research into the types of programmes in Gaelic that members | |
of the Gaelic-speaking community would like to be broadcast or | |
otherwise transmitted. | 30 |
(4B) But the Service are not to be entitled, for the purpose of carrying out | |
their functions, to provide— | |
(a) a Channel 3 service; | |
(b) Channel 4; | |
(c) Channel 5; | 35 |
(d) a national sound broadcasting service; | |
(e) a national digital sound programme service; or | |
(f) a television multiplex service or a radio multiplex service.” | |
(4) For subsection (9) of that section there shall be substituted— | |
“(9) In this section, section 183A and Schedule 19— | 40 |
‘Channel 3 service’, ‘Channel 4’ and ‘Channel 5’ each has the same | |
meaning as in Part 1; | |
‘national digital sound programme service’ has the same meaning | |
as in Part 2 of the Broadcasting Act 1996; | |
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‘national sound broadcasting service’ means a sound | |
broadcasting service within the meaning of Part 3 which, under | |
subsection (4)(a) of section 240 of the Communications Act 2003, | |
is a national service for the purposes of that section; | |
‘Gaelic’ means the Gaelic language as spoken in Scotland; | 5 |
‘programme’ includes any item included in a programme service; | |
‘radio multiplex service’ has the same meaning as in Part 2 of the | |
Broadcasting Act 1996; | |
‘the Service’ means the body established under subsection (3) and | |
known as Seirbheis nam Meadhanan Gàidhlig (the Gaelic | 10 |
Media Service); | |
‘television multiplex service’ has the meaning given by section | |
236(1) of the Communications Act 2003 to a multiplex service | |
within the meaning of Part 1 of the Broadcasting Act 1996; | |
and a reference to being available to persons in Scotland includes a | 15 |
reference to being available both to persons in Scotland and to others.” | |
204 Membership of the Service | |
After section 183 of the 1990 Act there shall be inserted— | |
“183A Membership of the Gaelic Media Service | |
(1) The Service shall consist of not more than twelve members. | 20 |
(2) The members of the Service are to be appointed by OFCOM | |
(3) OFCOM must appoint one of the members to be the chairman of the | |
Service. | |
(4) The approval of the Secretary of State is required for the appointment | |
of a person as a member of the Service, and for the appointment of a | 25 |
member as their chairman. | |
(5) The members of the Service must include— | |
(a) a member nominated by the BBC; | |
(b) a member nominated by Highlands and Islands Enterprise; and | |
(c) a member nominated by Bòrd Gàidhlig na h-Alba (the Gaelic | 30 |
Development Agency). | |
(6) When appointing members of the Service, OFCOM must have regard | |
to— | |
(a) the desirability of having members of the Service who are | |
proficient in written and spoken Gaelic; and | 35 |
(b) any guidance issued by the Secretary of State for the purposes | |
of this section. | |
(7) OFCOM must secure, so far as practicable, that the membership of the | |
Service is such that the interests of each of the following are adequately | |
represented— | 40 |
(a) the holders of licences to provide regional Channel 3 services | |
for areas wholly in Scotland; | |
(b) the holders of licences to provide regional Channel 3 services in | |
respect of which determinations under section 184(4)(b) are for | |
the time being in force; | 45 |
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(c) the independent television and radio production industries in | |
Scotland; | |
(d) other persons and bodies concerned with the promotion and | |
use of the Gaelic language, including those concerned with | |
education in Gaelic and in Gaelic culture. | 5 |
(8) Schedule 19 to this Act shall have effect with respect to the Service. | |
(9) In this section— | |
‘Bòrd Gàidhlig na h-Alba’ means the body of that name formed | |
under section 5 of the National Heritage (Scotland) Act 1985; | |
‘regional Channel 3 service’ has the same meaning as in Part 1. | 10 |
(10) The Secretary of State may by order amend the reference in subsection | |
(5) to Bòrd Gàidhlig na h-Alba (the Gaelic Development Agency)— | |
(a) by substituting a reference to another body formed under | |
section 5 of the National Heritage (Scotland) Act 1985 with | |
functions relating to the promotion of Gaelic; or | 15 |
(b) for the purpose of giving effect to a change to the name of the | |
body referred to in that subsection. | |
(11) An order under this section shall be subject to annulment in pursuance | |
of a resolution of either House of Parliament.” | |
205 Supplementary provisions about the Service | 20 |
(1) Schedule 19 to the 1990 Act (supplementary provisions about the Gaelic | |
Broadcasting Committee) shall be amended as follows. | |
(2) In paragraph 2 (tenure of office and remuneration)— | |
(a) in sub-paragraph (1), for “sub-paragraph (2)” there shall be substituted | |
“sub-paragraphs (1A) and (2)”; | 25 |
(b) after sub-paragraph (1) there shall be inserted— | |
“(1A) A person is not to be appointed as a member of the Service for | |
a term of more than four years (but a person so appointed | |
shall be eligible for re-appointment at the end of his term of | |
office).” | 30 |
(3) In paragraph 7 (employees of the Committee), after sub-paragraph (3) there | |
shall be inserted— | |
“(4) A person who is an employee of the Service is not to be eligible to be | |
appointed as a member of the Service.” | |
(4) After paragraph 8 (financial provision) there shall be inserted— | 35 |
“8A (1) The Service must pay all their receipts to OFCOM. | |
(2) OFCOM must hold amounts received by them under this paragraph | |
to the credit of the Gaelic Broadcasting Fund (and, accordingly, those | |
amounts are not to be regarded as forming part of OFCOM’s | |
revenues).” | 40 |
(5) In paragraph 12 (annual reports), after sub-paragraph (1) there shall be | |
inserted— | |
“(1A) The report must include a statement of how the Service are | |
proposing to carry out their functions during the next financial year.” | |
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Chapter 2 | |
Regulatory Structure for Independent Television Services | |
Preliminary | |
206 Regulation of independent television services | |
(1) It shall be a function of OFCOM to regulate the following services in | 5 |
accordance with this Act, the 1990 Act and the 1996 Act— | |
(a) services falling within subsection (2) that are provided otherwise than | |
by the BBC or the Welsh Authority; and | |
(b) services falling within subsection (3) that are provided otherwise than | |
by the BBC. | 10 |
(2) The services referred to in subsection (1)(a) are— | |
(a) television broadcasting services that are provided from places in the | |
United Kingdom with a view to their being broadcast otherwise than | |
only from a satellite; | |
(b) television licensable content services that are provided by persons | 15 |
under the jurisdiction of the United Kingdom for the purposes of the | |
Television without Frontiers Directive; | |
(c) digital television programme services that are provided by persons | |
under the jurisdiction of the United Kingdom for the purposes of that | |
Directive; | 20 |
(d) restricted television services that are provided from places in the | |
United Kingdom; and | |
(e) additional television services that are provided from places in the | |
United Kingdom. | |
(3) The services referred to in subsection (1)(b) are— | 25 |
(a) television multiplex services that are provided from places in the | |
United Kingdom; and | |
(b) digital additional television services that are provided by persons | |
under the jurisdiction of the United Kingdom for the purposes of the | |
Television without Frontiers Directive. | 30 |
207 Abolition of function of assigning television frequencies | |
The Secretary of State shall cease to have any function under the 1990 Act or | |
the 1996 Act of assigning frequencies for the purposes of any of the following— | |
(a) services falling to be licensed under Part 1 of the 1990 Act; | |
(b) S4C; or | 35 |
(c) television multiplex services falling to be licensed under Part 1 of the | |
1996 Act. | |
208 Abolition of licensing for local cable systems | |
On and after the television transfer date no licence shall be required under Part | |
2 of the 1990 Act for the provision of a local delivery service. | 40 |
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