Save Local Radio! Add your Voice to the protest!

The BBC is looking to axe many important aspects of Local Radio in a savage cuts programme. Here is the response that I have made to the BBC Trust. I do hope that our region's MP's will make a very great effort to oppose the loss of service. Also I hope that Local Councils if they haven't already will raise their voice against the plans. As well as the listener.

Response ID ANON-GSS6-FVTU-8
Submitted on 2011-10-27 21:03:50.123436
Q1: Your Station
BBC WM
Q2: Future Strategy
Future Strategy for Local Radio:Whilst I understand the reasons for making this proposal I do think that the very distinctive radio station would be
damaged.Once you have lost the listeners interest it will be hard to recover. BBC Radio WM is very speech based with strong local contributions that make it very
popular with all age groups. More importantly it is also a great medium for local business,Local Government individuals and local charachters. Losing any or all of
those contributions for radio construcetd and delivered outside of the region would be devastating for the community the radio station now provides for.
Q3: News
News commitments:Altogether the record of RadioWM is very good. Take the service they provide when the weather is bad. The 'localism' of the journalism and
the reports are first class. Lose the radio infrastrucure and the ability to report in the way that local people have come to expect , and the Trust will have overseen
a travesty in communications.
Q4: Participation
Participation commitments:By and large the record is good. Sometimes it is annoying to hear some presenters offering their own views as news...but the radio
station has quite an envious record of community support.
Q5: Reflecting Local Area
Serving the needs of the local area:The rich diversit of the West Midlands is a hard issue to capture but I do believe that there is a reasonable record of
attainment here.
Q6: Sport
Sports coverage:When I was Mayor of Wolverhampton we did some 600 visits across the city. Large numbers of the visits related to sports. There was always a
critic that would inform me that their sport did not get the publicity it deserves. Whilst I think the radio station does well to reflect the community. It could do much
better in reporting some of the thriving minority sports that take place in the region.
Q7: Music and arts
Music and arts commitments:I think that the answers to this consultation question is perhaps broadly similar to the sports question! Is good but can do better.
Q8: Any Other
Other comments:I want to see Local radio expand, I want to see it playing a central role in the life of the community I live in. I want to see the resource that I pay as a licence fee payer, reflected in proper funding of my local radio station. More than that I do not want to see the BBC Trust becoming the 'axeman' in
destroying strong speech based radio. Taking chunks out of the radio stations day and feeding homogenous dross in its place because it is 'cheap' to do and
having that part of the service masquerade as being local ! I do want to see change but I want Local Radio to reflect the change that is taking place within my
community and not the change that is taking politically within the Trust!