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Digital Economy Bill [HL]

My Lords, despite the growth of the internet, television remains the main source of information about the wider world for most people in the UK. The aim of this amendment, in the names of the noble Baroness, Lady Bonham-Carter of Yarnbury, and myself, is to insert a simple and uncontroversial amendment into the Bill with the aim of preserving the future of international and global content on Channel 4. I believe this will strengthen its remit and be of benefit to UK citizens. Since its early days, Channel 4 has had a strong track record in international content across a range of genres. Some would say this is a defining feature of its output. Notable examples include: "Channel 4 News", which has a higher quotient of international stories than most other news programmes and has a tradition of widening the international news agenda; "Dispatches", Channel 4’s current affairs strand which has a good record of consistently covering, and returning to, difficult international stories, especially on Iraq and Afghanistan; and "Unreported World", which covers stories from around the world which do not feature on the usual news/current affairs agenda. Some recent programmes have looked at child widows in Nepal and child rape in Liberia. It is significant that Channel 4 has recognised that non-news and current affairs content is equally important. "True Stories", More4’s award-winning documentary strand showcases the best documentaries from around the world, many of which give a real insight into the lives of people in other countries. Recent programmes include: "Afghan Star", an entertaining and insightful film about a "Pop Idol"-style contest in Afghanistan, and "The Glass House", a powerful film about women and girls in Iran who have been the victims of domestic violence or cruelty. Channel 4, to its credit, has a knack of approaching global issues with a popular and innovative touch which enables a range of audiences to connect with stories and people from around the world. This is particularly evident in its drama output. Highlights include "Sex Traffic", a pioneering drama highlighting the issue of trafficking women for prostitution, and "Slumdog Millionaire", the multi Oscar award-winning film from Film4, which documented the lives of children in the slums of Mumbai and was one of the most popular films in British cinemas last year. The central importance of international content was recognised by Channel 4 when it launched its Next on 4 mission statement which identified four core public purposes: to nurture new talent; to champion alternative voices and perspectives; to challenge people to see the world differently; and to inspire positive change in people’s lives. No fewer than three of these purposes have been incorporated into the Digital Economy Bill. However, it is both surprising and disappointing that the original wording of the third purpose, ""To challenge people to see the world differently"," has not been kept in the Bill. No one has explained satisfactorily why this purpose has been dropped. In comparison, the BBC charter has as one of its six purposes: ""To bring the world to the UK"." Making this ambition explicit in the charter has had a huge impact. It is true that Channel 4’s new functions will also include a requirement to contribute towards the fulfilment of the public service objectives, as defined in new Section 264A of the Communications Act 2003, but we must be clear that this refers only to news and current affairs. This short amendment will preserve the international content in other genres—drama, film, documentary, and specialist factual. While I appreciate that the current Channel 4 regime recognises that international content is a key part of its output, and I am reassured that it has no intention of cutting back on it, I fear that, if a duty towards internationalism is not specifically included in the Bill and enshrined in legislation, a future Channel 4 regime may see this as an area ripe for cuts. So I urge the Government to support this simple amendment and strengthen Channel 4’s remit for the future.