SPEAKING in a Parliamentary debate on the future of local media, the MP for Frome and East Somerset has highlighted the critical work carried out by local news outlets despite increasingly stretched resources.

On Wednesday, December 3, Anna Sabine praised the “brilliant work” of local publications, including Tindle’s Midsomer Norton & Radstock Journal, noting that they “hold power to account, they inform people on issues that matter locally, and they keep our communities engaged.” She also described them as “exemplars of what local journalism should be.”

The debate, led by MP for Bromley and Biggin Hill, Peter Fortune, examined the mounting challenges facing local print media – from falling advertising revenues and the prevalence of free online content, to a growing disengagement from news consumption altogether.

Highlighting the innovative measures many outlets are exploring to stay afloat, including the use of AI, the development of podcasts, and new subscription models, Ms Sabine noted that these strategies have not always been successful. In some parts of the country, she warned, a resulting “postcode lottery” of local news provision has left many communities facing “local news deserts.”

Citing the DCMS BBC Mid-Term Review, published in January 2024 and containing 39 recommendations for the BBC and Ofcom, Ms Sabine said the subsequent Ofcom review into local media and its proposed measures “deserve serious consideration”, adding that recent government steps which make local journalism less sustainable are “frustrating”.

She highlighted the Liberal Democrats’ amendment to the Planning and Infrastructure Bill, which would require at least one public notice to be printed in a local newspaper, ensuring local titles receive a share of the £32-million annual public notice budget. She also reiterated Liberal Democrat support for expanding the BBC’s Local Democracy Reporting Scheme, which she called a “lifeline, placing dedicated reporters in local newsrooms to cover councils, courts, and public bodies,” provided it is sustainably funded.