I refer the Rt Hon Member to my answer to Written Question 10152 answered on 22nd June.

I refer the Rt Hon Member to my answer to Written Question 10152 answered on 22nd June.

The Department for Culture, Media and Sport and Ofcom engage regularly on a wide range of policy matters.

On 10 March 2026 the Government laid the On-demand Programme Services (Tier 1 Services) Regulations 2026. These regulations designate video-on-demand services with more than 500,000 average UK monthly users as Tier 1 services, bringing them under enhanced regulation by Ofcom. We estimate that this will bring over 20 of the most popular services within scope of regulation. In setting the threshold at this level, we have taken a proportionate approach and the Department for Culture, Media and Sport estimates the equivalent annual net direct cost to business to be well below £10 million per annum.

Tier 1 services will be required to comply with a new Standards Code, which will be similar to the Broadcasting Code, and will set appropriate content standards for services and protections against harmful and offensive material. The new Code, which Ofcom is currently consulting on, will include rules to ensure that news, in whatever form, is reported with due accuracy and presented with due impartiality. These rules will be comparable to those that apply to licensed broadcasters.

Where breaches of the new Tier 1 Standards Code are found, Ofcom has full powers to investigate and issue statutory sanctions, including financial penalties, where appropriate. The maximum fine for each breach is £250,000 or 5% of qualifying revenue, whichever is higher. This is in line with broadcasting legislation. In addition, Ofcom will, as a last resort, be able to restrict video-on-demand services' ability to appear on UK platforms.

Local radio is an integral part of the communities it exists within, and local commercial and community radio services can bring localities together by reflecting local experiences and delivering local news and information.

Changes made by the Media Act 2024 remove some regulatory burdens on commercial radio operating on FM licenses, including requirements for commercial stations to deliver particular types of content or to target specific groups. This gives commercial radio stations the freedom to organise its programmes to meet the changing needs of its audiences, particularly as listening increasingly shifts to digital.

At the same time, Part 5 of the Media Act now strengthens protections for the regular broadcast of local news and local information. For example stations will be specifically required to provide news which has been gathered within the locality and the area to which they broadcast. The detailed requirements have been set out in new guidance that Ofcom has published on 1 July.

Ofcom is currently running a consultation on the implementation of these changes to local news provision (closing 22 September), and will in due course publish a new Code of Practice that will set out the detailed requirements for commercial radio stations in delivering local news relevant to their local communities.

Any assessment of compliance with licensing requirements, including the requirements to provide local news, and in light of the changes proposed by Nation Radio following its acquisition of Time 107.5, is a matter for Ofcom as the independent regulator.

Local radio is an integral part of the communities it exists within, and local commercial and community radio services can bring localities together by reflecting local experiences and delivering local news and information.

Changes made by the Media Act 2024 remove some regulatory burdens on commercial radio operating on FM licenses, including requirements for commercial stations to deliver particular types of content or to target specific groups. This gives commercial radio stations the freedom to organise its programmes to meet the changing needs of its audiences, particularly as listening increasingly shifts to digital.

At the same time, Part 5 of the Media Act now strengthens protections for the regular broadcast of local news and local information. For example stations will be specifically required to provide news which has been gathered within the locality and the area to which they broadcast. The detailed requirements have been set out in new guidance that Ofcom has published on 1 July.

Ofcom is currently running a consultation on the implementation of these changes to local news provision (closing 22 September), and will in due course publish a new Code of Practice that will set out the detailed requirements for commercial radio stations in delivering local news relevant to their local communities.

Any assessment of compliance with licensing requirements, including the requirements to provide local news, and in light of the changes proposed by Nation Radio following its acquisition of Time 107.5, is a matter for Ofcom as the independent regulator.

My Department is working closely with Ofcom to progress implementation of the Media Act 2024. The Act delegates certain powers to the Secretary of State and to Ofcom in terms of designating ‘in-scope’ services and developing relevant guidance.

The new online prominence regime, under the Act, seeks to support effective negotiations between public service broadcasters and TV platforms for the carriage of designated PSB services (referred to in the Act as “internet programme services”). It does so via a set of “agreement objectives” which both parties must act consistently with, as well as Ofcom guidance, which they are required to consult on.

Further information on Media Act implementation can be found on Ofcom’s website: https://www.ofcom.org.uk/tv-radio-and-on-demand/Media-Act-Implementation/.

My Department is working closely with Ofcom to progress implementation of the Media Act 2024. The Act delegates certain powers to the Secretary of State and to Ofcom in terms of designating ‘in-scope’ services and developing relevant guidance.

The new online prominence regime, under the Act, seeks to support effective negotiations between public service broadcasters and TV platforms for the carriage of designated PSB services (referred to in the Act as “internet programme services”). It does so via a set of “agreement objectives” which both parties must act consistently with, as well as Ofcom guidance, which they are required to consult on.

Further information on Media Act implementation can be found on Ofcom’s website: https://www.ofcom.org.uk/tv-radio-and-on-demand/Media-Act-Implementation/.