Facing television's new frontier

By Giancarlo Rinaldi
South of Scotland reporter, BBC Scotland news website

Michael Moore has raised regular concerns about the service

Politicians have never been slow to recognise the importance of television.

It is a medium by which they can carry their message to large swathes of the electorate and plays a huge part in the lives of most of their constituents.

It is little surprise, then, that the digital switchover has proved a cause for concern in the Borders.

MPs and MSPs of every political persuasion have been fighting to ensure the best service possible is provided for their area.

One of the most vociferous has been Lib Dem MP Michael Moore.

He has constantly raised fears of a "two-tier" service.

The switch to digital television should be a positive move which will bring greater choice to many TV viewers across the UK John Lamont MSP

The number of relay transmitters in the Borders means many homes will not have access to as many channels as those served by a main transmitter.

It was an issue he highlighted to Culture Secretary Andy Burnham earlier this week.

Tory MSP John Lamont also has some reservations on the same subject.

"The switch to digital television should be a positive move which will bring greater choice to many TV viewers across the UK," he said.

"However, there are serious concerns over just whether the service people receive will be all it has been cracked up to be.

"It has recently emerged that many households in the Borders will only have access to a limited range of channels after the switchover."

He intends to raise the issue in the Scottish Parliament in the hope that lessons from the Borders could reach the rest of the UK.

Television survey

The SNP's Christine Grahame has been watching the situation closely.

She launched a consultation this year on broadcasting in general but specifically asked how well informed residents felt about the digital switchover.

A total of 54% of those who responded said they had enough information but 37% said they did not have sufficient detail with a further 9% undecided.

Ms Grahame warned the figures showed there was still work to be done in getting the message across.

Time will soon tell how successful the mission to convert more than 50,000 Borders homes to digital has been.

With the countdown clock now in its final hours, the region will find out on Thursday how well-founded political fears for its television service have been.