"My idea of what public and political service is, is to try to make possible the things which are right, and you normally do that in association with other people, some in Parliament, some outside of Parliament, " he told the BBC News Channel.

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But few expect this to happen and observers say the idea is unrealistic and risks hastening the demise of public service broadcasting on the third and fifth channels.

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The idea of a Public Value Test is to make a judgment about the value of the service, balanced against the rest of the market and any potential harm to competitors.

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In public-service reform, for example, the main idea is to increase the introduction of market forces in order that those who commission services may choose from a mix of competing state, private and third-sector providers.

ECONOMIST: Bagehot