A Short Note on the Regulation of Broadcasting in an Independent Scotland

Abstract

The Scottish Government has issued a prospectus for independence, should it win a plebiscite in September 2014. It plans independence to be in March 2016, together with accession to membership of the European Union. Its proposed arrangements for the regulation of broadcasting are presently very weak, with omission of a media regulator, a spectrum regulator, an advertising standards authority and the bodies for protecting children when using the Internet. Given the need to re-issue broadcasting and spectrum licences, it would be necessary to have laws and at least senior staff for regulatory bodies in place one year before independence. Complex arrangements have been proposed to replace the BBC with a Scottish Broadcasting Service, while maintaining BBC broadcasts. In order to be ready for independence, considerable further work is required to address essential institutions, their independence and systems of appeal and oversight.