Televising Parliament back in focus

There are proposals for broadcasts of debates and, later, of select committee hearings.

A proposal for in-house televising of Parliament is back on the agenda and is going to a Cabinet committee for consideration.

The proposal was first put forward by Parliament's multi-party standing orders committee in 2003.

The Cabinet last year approved spending $6.2 million to set up in-house television coverage of Parliament.

But the idea was shelved, in election year, when media objected strenuously to plans for Parliament to take over the coverage of its own proceedings.

While the footage would have been made available free to networks, media complained it was at the expense of access for TVNZ and TV3.

During the scrap, TV3 broadcast a shot of Cabinet minister David Benson-Pope asleep in his seat.

The Dominion-Post and the Press also published the photograph.

There are rules for filming in Parliament, including that the focus must be on the MP speaking, no close-ups and only occasional wide shots.

A spokeswoman for Speaker Margaret Wilson said the proposal to televise the whole of Parliament was back on the table. It was going to a Cabinet committee, she said.

Currently only question time - which lasts about 1 1/2 - is broadcast on a Sky channel. Parliament is broadcast on radio.

The idea is for television broadcasts of the debating chamber, and later, of select committee hearings that are open to the public.

- NZPA