According to the UK Green Party website the Green Party will try to achieve the following if they gain power at the 2010 general election:
CMS650 We would seek to restore some public service obligations to the commercial TV and Radio broadcasters. In particular we wish to see the reintroduction and protection of locally owned and run television and radio channels through more stringent controls on the licenses issued to broadcasters.
CMS651 We would establish Community Media Centres, at a sub-regional level, where residents of the area can be trained and produce programmes that reflect the diversity of perspectives in their community. These Community Media Centres should be run democratically and accountable to regional public broadcasting councils.
CMS652 We will remove financial and other bureaucratic barriers to small geographically based channels built around the local output of Community Media Centres.
CMS653 Broadcast media will be regulated such that there is a presumption against aggregation of ownership both within and across media.
CMS654 We are opposed to ‘contesting’ funds for Public service programmes ((i.e. opening up a programme fund for which all Broadcasters can bid). This will undermine BBC’s and C4’s public service platform. Only where existing public service broadcasters are unable or unwilling to meet an identified public service need would funding through PSMC (see CMS646) be opened to alternative channels.
I would be interested to hear both positive and negative views on UK Green Party’s Commercial Broadcasting policies in the comments below?