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provision of more than £1m in both 1981/82 and 1982/83, but
that requirements on the capital side in 1983/84 and 1984/85 will necessitate the new money mentioned in paragraph 1(b)
above. The projected capital programme will be about the
same level in 1985/86, will rise in 1986/87 and then decline
again.
3. The proposed capital expenditure contains some
unavoidable new elements, in particular further modernisation
of Bush House to deal with an unexpected health hazard caused
by asbestos ducting and unforeseen ground works at Orfordness.
It is also necessary to replace obsolete transmitters and
plant with up-to-date equipment.
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All the projects involve
further development of work whose commencement has been
approved, except a proposed relay station in Hong Kong
designed to improve audibility in China and Japan on which
work would begin in 1985/86.
4.
We should attach top priority to ensuring that the BBC
is heard. Its audibility is far below that of Radio Moscow, the Voice of America and other international broadcasting
organisations.
The savings which the External Services were
required to make in 1979 of £2.7m p.a. in that year's prices
have been found from the capital side in 1980/81 and 1981/82.
But as I said in my minute of 21 July, we cannot go on milking the capital programme. We have therefore put the BBC on notice (without as yet instructing them) that they must start to make savings in current operations reaching £1.7m p.a.
from 1982/83 onwards. This would mainly be by abolishing the ranscription Service (tapes of cultural and other programmes
/distributed
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