A UK House of Lords committee has called for the introduction of a pool of funds to support public service broadcasting other than the BBC. The report is relevant to the growing community radio sector and also to TV Channel 4.

In its latest report Public Service Broadcasting: short-term crisis, the Communication Committee has warned that commercially funded public service broadcasters “face severe financial problems.”

The report said the introduction of a new PSB fund of contestable funding is justified to ensure there is sufficient free public service provision.

The fund would not, the report said, require additional taxpayer support. One proposal is that money from the licence fee that is now being spent on digital switchover, should be paid into the fund when the digital switchover ends in 2012.