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Chamber and committees

Rejecting Cuts to STV North and Solidarity with NUJ and BECTU Members in North East Scotland

  • Submitted by: Mercedes Villalba, North East Scotland, Scottish Labour
  • Date lodged: Tuesday, 17 February 2026
  • Motion type: Members' Business Motion
  • Motion reference: S6M-20824
  • Current status: Has not yet achieved cross-party support

That the Parliament notes with concern the manner in which Ofcom has undertaken the consultation on proposed cuts to STV programming; further notes the belief that Ofcom must ensure that its responsibilities to broadcasters, employees and communities are fairly balanced, and that all parties are proactively engaged in the review of broadcasting regulation in an equitable and proportionate way; notes the view that STV’s ability to meet and fund its licence obligations with regard to STV News must not adversely impact on journalists and other workers, or on the quality and detail of news programming, including in the North East Scotland region; acknowledges what it sees as the importance of the reliable, trusted regional news coverage provided by the STV North edition of the News at 6; notes the opposition to the proposed cuts to STV programming and the solidarity with members of the National Union of Journalists (NUJ) and Broadcasting, Entertainment, Communications and Theatre Union (BECTU) in the North East Scotland region, and further notes the calls on Ofcom to protect the public interest across Scotland, and to reject STV's request to remove the sub-opt for Dundee and its request to end the STV North edition of the News at 6.


Supported by: Alasdair Allan, Colin Beattie, Neil Bibby, Foysol Choudhury, Rhoda Grant, Bill Kidd, Monica Lennon, Carol Mochan, Kevin Stewart, David Torrance, Evelyn Tweed