Issue of the day today has been local reaction to the government's poor handling of the roll-out of digital terrestrial TV. As most people in the south of Dundee (most places south of the Law Hill really) get their TV from the Tay Bridge relay transmitter on the south side of the Tay which doesn't carry Freeview, they are paying a TV licence for rather less of a service than people who can pick up the wider choice of digital TV from their local transmitter.The government's roll out of Freeview has been ill-thought out. It was rolled out to main transmitters only & now there's not enough bandwidth left for the 25% or so of the population who are served by other transmitters to give them digital TV too until the "analogue switch off" which is years away (in our Grampian TV area - 2010).
I wrote to the Department of Culture Media & Sport earlier in the year and the disappointing Ministerial response was widely reported locally. Many residents in the City Centre & West End have commented just how unfair the situation is so I have now written to T Blair at Number 10 about it. Click on the headline for the full story on the Dundee LibDem website.
Well covered in the Dundee Courier today (see http://www.thecourier.co.uk/output/2006/05/01/newsstory8287028t0.asp) and I have spoken on the Wave 102 & Radio Tay news about the issue this morning.
If people can't get the same service for the same TV licence fee, shouldn't they be getting a refund, Mr Blair?