Thank you very much, Deputy Presiding Officer. I said when we last addressed these matters before the summer recess that I would provide Members with an opportunity in Government time to debate the draft BBC charter upon its publication. Members will be aware that the charter was published by the United Kingdom Government on 15 September, and this is an opportunity for Members to express their views on the provisions contained in that draft. But this is also an opportunity for myself as a Minister and for others to hear, but also to listen to, what Members have to say about the provisions in the BBC charter.

The BBC is one of the most important national institutions that we have in the United Kingdom. It brings us together and it provides us with an opportunity to see ourselves portrayed on the screens, and also to have a debate and a discussion and to be informed about our national life. It is incumbent upon us as politicians and elected representatives to recognise the role that we have to play in supporting and enabling the BBC to continue to perform these functions. In doing so, it’s also important, I think, for us to recognise what is right and proper for us not to do as well. It is not right and proper for any elected politician, in my view, to either abuse or to bully BBC journalists because they do not follow the line that some of us would prefer them to; that they do not ensure that the BBC is a state broadcaster rather than a public broadcaster, and that means that all of us, whatever our private views, have to ensure that BBC journalists and the integrity of the BBC are always protected and enhanced at all times.

The written statement that I released last week was the initial Welsh Government response to this draft charter and framework agreement. What I tried to in that statement was to identify those areas where the charter has been markedly improved, so that it does mandate the BBC to deliver more for Wales and allows the people of Wales via this National Assembly—and the National Assembly rather than the Welsh Government—to hold the BBC and Ofcom more closely to account. These are matters that we’ve discussed in this place for some years.

There are clearly some outstanding issues that we would wish to resolve before the charter is finalised. Yesterday, I met with the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport and we had what I felt was a very good meeting to discuss our different, sometimes, but joint visions for the future of the BBC. I’m very confident that the Welsh Government and the United Kingdom Government will be able to work together to ensure that we do have the provisions in place that will enable the BBC to serve the whole of the population of the United Kingdom, including Wales.

We have, of course, over recent months, been fully involved in the charter review process. The memorandum of understanding that we agreed last year sets out how the United Kingdom Government, the Welsh Government, the BBC Trust and the BBC executive will continue to co-operate and work on these matters. The draft charter and framework agreement does not include everything that we and other devolved administrations have called for during our discussions with the United Kingdom Government. However, I do believe that, without our direct input into the charter review during recent months, we would not have been in the position that we are today. I was grateful to the Secretary of State for the tone in which her correspondence to Members here addressed those issues and addressed the working relationship between the two Governments. Our contribution to the charter review process has been vital and, I believe, has ensured that the interests of Wales have been well protected.

The charter gives the BBC a much stronger public purpose—to reflect, represent and serve the diverse communities of Wales and the other nations and regions of the United Kingdom. In doing so, it must also now support the creative economies across the UK, including the thriving creative industries we have here in Wales. This means that we can expect more and better content and programming made for Wales, about Wales and in Wales, across the whole of the BBC.

I’m also very pleased that the charter provides a renewed commitment to Welsh language services. The accompanying framework agreement reaffirms the BBC’s partnership with S4C,

‘working together to observe and safeguard the independence of both’.

It also provides a strong financial settlement in relation to the licence fee element of S4C’s funding, which is absolutely essential if that independence is to be protected in the future and if that independence is to be a meaningful independence.

Although the settlement provides S4C with financial stability until 2022, the fact that there is no increase in funding and no allowance for inflation will provide significant future challenges for the channel. The Welsh Government is fully aware of the importance of both of these for S4C and has been clear about the need to protect S4C’s independence and to secure its financial position. I will therefore be asking Members to support amendment 1 in the name of Rhun ap Iorwerth. We will, I should say, be supporting all of the amendments to the motion this afternoon.

I welcome the United Kingdom Government’s intention to carry out a comprehensive review of S4C, which Welsh Government has continually pushed for and which the legislation demanded should take place at five-year periods. This, we believe, should have taken place in parallel with the BBC charter review rather than after it, but we recognise the current situation. We would have preferred a broader, more fundamental review of the public service broadcasting needs of Wales. However, what we need to do is to ensure that the comprehensive review of S4C, which we hope and expect to take place next year, will be one which is comprehensive and which will strengthen S4C in the future.

My concern, Deputy Presiding Officer, in looking at the draft charter and framework agreement was that it would reflect the commitments that the BBC’s director general, Tony Hall, has made in his letter to the First Minister on 12 May and has been discussed in this place on previous occasions. This includes recognition that the portrayal and representation of Wales and the other devolved nations must improve. We also support the intention to have a drama commissioning editor responsible for each nation and we fully expect this to happen, considering Cardiff’s development as a BBC drama hub.

Lord Hall has also made a number of important public pledges to Wales, including additional funding for improving services and for more dedicated content. I am satisfied that the BBC’s mission, public purposes and creative remit are significantly strengthened in the draft charter, clearly and effectively mandating the BBC to deliver much more for Wales. I therefore look forward to Lord Hall’s commitments being delivered upon in full. Let me say what I mean by that: we understand that there are savings targets being announced by BBC Wales and also by the BBC across the United Kingdom. We expect—and I believe that the intention as reported by Lord Hall was—that the additional funding should be in addition, a net increase and not simply a replacement for some of the savings that have been demanded. And that is an important indication of the integrity of the promises made by the BBC. We expect to be able to take BBC pledges at face value and without examining, perhaps, the small print. So, we do expect to see these net additional resources being delivered to BBC Wales over the coming period.

We hope and expect that Ken MacQuarrie, who was appointed last week as BBC director of nations and regions, will proactively and purposefully lead a concerted effort to support BBC Cymru Wales to deliver for Wales and the other devolved countries.

In its annual plans, the BBC will now have to set out how it will deliver upon its new duties, including improving services for Wales. It is required to report in detail on how well it is delivering against these plans and Ofcom will be able to regulate to ensure the BBC does more if the goals it sets for itself are insufficient or if it is falling short of delivering upon them. Crucially, the National Assembly for Wales will also now have powers to scrutinise the BBC, to call it to appear before committees and to hold it directly to account, which, up until now, has been the right of the UK Parliament alone in these matters. It is right and proper that all the Parliaments of the United Kingdom play a role in the accountability of our UK institutions, and this Parliament has to play that role as well. I think one of the crucial issues we need to address as parliamentarians is that inter-institutional accountability that will strengthen the United Kingdom and strengthen United Kingdom institutions. I hope that public service broadcasters will be accountable to this National Assembly rather than this Government, and I believe that that will be an important step forward.

The new BBC board will have a non-executive member for Wales whose job it will be to ensure the interests of Wales are understood and acted upon by the BBC from the very beginning. The Welsh Government will be closely involved in the recruitment of that member for Wales, and our consent is now required before that appointment can be made. So, there has been very real progress on a number of important issues.