NATIONAL AUDIT OFFICE REPORT ON DIGITAL SWITCHOVER REINFORCES MP's CONCERNS

12.00.00am GMT Thu 28th Feb 2008

A report published yesterday by the National Audit Office into the preparations for digital switchover in the UK has highlighted many of the concerns raised by Borders MP Michael Moore over the past couple of years.

The report found that, although the level of awareness of switchover is already fairly high - reaching 89% by October 2007 - understanding of certain key aspects of switchover is variable. Almost one third of people do not understand that they will need some form of digital equipment in order to keep watching television after switchover, and more than half are unaware that they will not be able to record one channel while watching another using an ordinary VCR.

The National Audit Office also reported that the BBC, who are responsible for the Digital Switchover Help Scheme, found problems with the implementation of the help scheme in Whitehaven. In particular, the BBC found that communication with those eligible for help was the weakest aspect of the scheme. It is estimated that 10,000 people in the Borders will be eligible for support from the help scheme.

The National Audit Office advised the BBC last year that there was not enough time between the completion of the Whitehaven trial, in November 2007, and the awarding of the help scheme contract, in February 2008, for all the lessons from the trial to have been learnt and incorporated into the contract. Last week it was announced that Eaga plc have been awarded the contract. Mr Moore is awaiting a response from the Minister about how the help scheme will be implemented in the Borders.

The report also raised concerns about the complexity of the arrangements for delivering switchover, and highlights the fact that only fifty percent of viewers in the Borders will receive the full range of digital television channels after switchover; those who receive their signal from a relay will only receive half the available channels. The report states that Ofcom will publish further information about this in March 2008, but Mr Moore believes they should be taking action. Commenting after the report was published, he said:

"I have been concerned for a long time about the divided responsibilities for the switchover process. The Government established Digital UK to implement much of the switchover process, but then handed responsibility for the help scheme to the BBC, who set up a subsidiary to administer the scheme. In most other Government projects, the relevant Department directly funds and awards the contract, and is therefore directly accountable for its success or failure. However, for the digital switchover project, the Government has seen fit to create a complicated division of responsibilities.

"I am pleased that awareness of switchover among the public continues to be high, but I remain concerned that not enough people in the Borders have been made aware of the full implications of switchover. We need to see a concerted effort to ensure that the complications of using a VCR, for example, are clearly explained to viewers in the Borders."