96834/15/49
CONFIDENTIA
Colonial Office,
The Church House,
Great Smith Street,
London, S.W.1.
10th August, 1949.
My dew Grantham,
Your letter to Sidebotham of 14th June about broadcasting has been unanswered for longer than we Would have wished; but, as you are aware, there is more than ons difficult side issue involved and only now do we feel that we can reply effectively.
We are replying at the same time to your confidential savingrem No. 461 of 11th June to the effect that we do not favour the suggestion that the broadcasting service should be handed over to the commercial Rediffusion Company, but that we would gladly give favourable consideration to an application for capital assistance from the General Reserve under the Colonial Development and Welfare Act of up to $250,000 in order to help you to meet your unexpect- edly large bill for improvements in the premises and equipment of the Government broadcasting service.
We do not want to be unduly rigid or doctrinaire on the subject of commercial broadcasting; but from the information available to us there seem grounds for hoping that with perseverence, the stimulus of new premises and equipment and possibly some incresRe in the receiving licence fee, which I believe you have been considering, the Government Broadcasting Service should nearly, if not quite, balance its
In such circumstances we do not
recurring budget. 포
-
Sir A. Grantham, K.C.M.G.
/ see
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