What estimate she has made of the value of the analogue spectrum once digital switchover has been completed.

At this stage, it is not possible to make any reliable assumption of the market value or potential auction proceeds of the spectrum released by digital switchover.

It is difficult to estimate that value—some advisers estimate £2 billion, while others estimate £5 billion. If the value is between £2 billion and £5 billion, can we give some of that money to some of Britain's 12 million old-age pensioners, some of whom will not be able to afford the cost of switchover? Under current plans, subsidies will be provided only to over-75s on pension credit. Even if the figure is as low as £2 billion, can some of it be used to help our pensioners with the cost of switchover?

My hon. Friend knows that we have announced a package of help, which will be funded by the BBC as part of the new licence fee settlement that will be negotiated shortly—since the cost is a broadcasting cost, that is how we expect it to be met. One of the most important principles in ensuring that digital switchover takes place properly is making sure that free-to-air access to television is available to everyone. Without special help, which we have proposed, some people risk being left behind, but we will not allow that to happen.

What representations has the Secretary of State made to the Chancellor about allowing some of the bandwidth that will become available following analogue switch-off to go to terrestrial channels in order to allow the country to view high-definition television? She will be aware that some countries already have high-definition TV, and when we host the Olympics in 2012, it is vital that everybody in the United Kingdom who is watching terrestrial channels can see the glory of London and, hopefully, of our athletes on high-definition television.

I take the hon. Lady's point, but the policy is clear: spectrum released by switchover will be sold in the marketplace in a technology-neutral auction. Ofcom, which would oversee such an auction, will take account of the needs of broadcasters at that time for the precise reason that the hon. Lady has outlined.

May I take this opportunity to wish the Secretary of State, her team and officials in the Department a merry Christmas? Before we suspend hostilities completely and start playing football across the Floor of the House, however, does the right hon. Lady agree with the review of the BBC's royal charter by the House of Lords, which states:

"we do not believe that the costs of promoting and co-ordinating digital switchover and providing targeted help for the vulnerable and disadvantaged should fall on the licence fee payer"?

In a similar spirit, may I welcome the hon. Gentleman to the Front Bench and wish him and his team a happy Christmas? We will resume Dispatch Box hostilities in the new year. We agree with a number of the recommendations in the House of Lords report and will take them into account as we finalise the White Paper on the BBC's charter. However, the recommendation that the hon. Gentleman has mentioned is not one of those that I accept. As I said to my hon. Friend Derek Wyatt, wherever the costs of switchover fall, they are broadcasting costs, which should be met by the broadcasters and ultimately through the licence fee.

I, too, wish the Secretary of State and her team a happy Christmas, but she is being complacent about high-definition television. I discussed the issue today with the industry body, Intellect, which told me that high-definition televisions are so popular this Christmas that suppliers cannot meet demand. High-definition televisions use 50 per cent. more of the spectrum than ordinary television sets. Will the Secretary of State assure people who have bought high-definition televisions this Christmas that they will have access to the additional spectrum they need to make use of their Christmas purchases?

There is no question of anybody who buys a high-definition television this Christmas being unable to use it because of a subsequent decision on the allocation of spectrum taken by Ofcom implicitly as an expression of Government policy. An absolutely consistent part of our approach to moving from analogue to digital has been that decisions on the allocation of the spectrum released by the switchover will be taken at the time—between 2008 and 2010. As was well captured in the debates in both Houses on the Communications Act 2003, we have taken that approach because of the pace of technological advance and the importance of ensuring that consumers have the benefit of keeping up with it. Who pays for the spectrum is a much more significant issue than what it is used for.