Newspaper Redundancies

Part of Oral Answers to Questions — Culture, Media and Sport – in the House of Commons am 2:30 pm ar 2 Mawrth 2009.

Danfonwch hysbysiad imi am ddadleuon fel hyn

Photo of John Whittingdale John Whittingdale Chair, Culture, Media and Sport Committee, Vice-Chair, Conservative 1922 Committee 2:30, 2 Mawrth 2009

Does the Secretary of State accept that in many communities the local newspaper is as important as the local post office, the local shop or the local pub? Given the number of closures, which he has already referred to, and the fact that journalists are being laid off, offices are being centralised and newspapers are becoming more distant from their local communities, there needs to be urgent action, in particular to relax the competition rules so that markets are judged more broadly in terms of media consumption, and also to encourage local newspapers to take part in consortiums for the provision of regional news, while at the same time perhaps addressing the problem in the broadcast market for news.