Councillors urged to back Stronger BBC Alba in Royal Charter

Showing more original, high quality programming on Gaelic TV channel BBC Alba would benefit Gaelic education, it has been suggested.

MG Alba, which operates in partnership with the BBC, has asked that a stronger BBC Alba should form part of the BBC's next Royal Charter.

Highland Council officers have urged councillors to support this call.

The officials said more Gaelic programmes would support "significant growth" in Gaelic medium education.

Councillors on Highland Council's Gaelic implementation group will be asked to back MG Alba's position at a meeting on 12 November.

Launched in September 2008, BBC Alba now reaches on average more than 700,000 viewers per week in Scotland.

Last month, MG Alba said 73% of what was shown was repeats and on current funding only 1.7 hours of original output, including news, was possible per day.

It said this figure was "significantly short" of an ambition of three hours per day.

The organisation has called for a "stronger BBC Alba" and for the BBC to produce 10 hours of original programming per week for the channel for the next 10 years of the charter, in comparison to the current 4.4 hours currently developed.

Its youth programming has included involvement in the making of a television adaption of Mairi Hedderwick's Katie Morag books.

The Royal Charter sets out the public purposes of the BBC, guarantees its independence and outlines the duties of the BBC Trust.

The current charter runs until 31 December 2016.