Broadcasting: The sooner we lose analogue, the better

In 1977, more than half the population watched the Morecambe and Wise Christmas Special. In the multichannel age, outside of an international sporting triumph or major global television event, it seems unlikely that this kind of audience could be achieved again.

But while these viewing figures may be unreachable today, the fundamental principle behind why 27 million people tuned in remains. People want good TV. And this principle will be key to the success of digital switchover. Digital TV shouldn't just offer more TV; it should offer more good TV.

Digital switchover presents broadcasters with a major opportunity and a major challenge. It opens up and expands the market, offering a share of the spoils for everyone. But to succeed they need to pull in the viewers, which means producing a high-quality product. The evidence is that broadcasters and producers are already rising to this challenge.

High-quality home-grown programmes, such as Casanova and The Thick of It, or quality imports such as Curb Your Enthusiasm and The West Wing, are already being brought to audiences through digital. It's also adding value to terrestrial TV broadcasts; Doctor Who Confidential and Big Brother's Big Mouth are good examples.

And repeats have a role to play too. Thanks to our tradition of public service broadcasting we have an unrivalled heritage of ground-breaking, innovative, high-quality TV. If we can see beyond the simplistic equation of "repeats equals bad, new programmes equals good", we can use digital to bring this heritage to new viewers. There is a whole generation who would come to I, Claudius or Brideshead Revisited, The Ascent of Man or Our Friends in the North with fresh eyes.

Viewers rightly don't want this opportunity at the expense of quality new shows. But the multichannel environment allows both. The viewer really can have their cake and eat it. The customer really is king.

The UK has the best television in the world, in no small part the result of the unique system of public service broadcasting we have developed over the past 70 years of television broadcasting. The BBC, as the cornerstone of this system, uses its privileged position to drive up standards among the other broadcasters with which it shares the limited analogue spectrum - ITV, Channel 4 (S4C in Wales) and Five.

We'll outline our plans to ensure this beneficial balance continues for years to come in the BBC White Paper, due to be published shortly. And we've already given the BBC the extra task of building a digital Britain. The BBC has often acted as a "trusted guide" to new technology - whether for FM radio, colour TV or the internet.

Now it is doing the same for digital TV. It will set up and fund the Targeted Assistance scheme, ensuring that people who will need help to switch get it. For many this help will be free of charge.

Of course, there are many other compelling reasons to make the switch to digital TV between 2008 and 2012. Broadcasters are currently burdened by having to transmit in both analogue and digital signals, wasting money that could be going into creating more and better programmes. Switchover will stop this waste.

And within this broadcasting system, we have the best creative talent in the world: our writers, directors, producers and technical experts are highly rated and have the international awards to prove it. They create original programmes to cater for our distinctive British taste and seek out the best programmes from other countries and bring them to our screens. To ensure this continues, I'm working to make Britain the world's creative hub - a place where innovative and original talent will always find a home.

But there is a danger that this talent will be stifled if we fail to provide the industry with the tools it needs. We owe it to people in the industry to make sure they have the most up-to-date technology available. That's digital technology.

So ambition for Britain's broadcasting future is driving switchover. And so is fairness. Until we switch off the analogue signal, about a quarter of homes can't get all the digital TV services through an aerial. We get hundreds of letters a month from viewers who rightly see this an unjust. Unless we act quickly and decisively, we could become a nation of digital "haves" and "have-nots". And there are people today paying their licence fee to fund digital BBC services that they can't currently access. This cannot continue. Digital television is also pioneering new services, offering health advice, shopping, education, holidays, text messages, email, auctions, games and food delivered directly to your door. We also have an opportunity to provide better access to television and other services for people with disabilities, especially those with sight or hearing impairment, which would be impossible with the old analogue signal.

All in all, the arguments for switchover far outweigh any argument against it.

Other countries in Europe and around the world are making their own plans to switch. And the experts agree that this is the future of television.

So the Government has two choices: we can follow this new technology, making decisions retrospectively and risk allowing the most vulnerable to slip behind the rest of society.

Or we can be ahead of the game, shaping the future and ensuring that the benefits are evenly spread. For good reason, we have chosen the latter.