BBC Scotland Executive Report 2007/08

When I wrote my Controller's Overview last year I did so having just moved into our new headquarters at Pacific Quay in Glasgow. Our official opening soon followed and, in the ten months since then, we have started to realise some of the incredible potential of this building. Indeed many thousands have already been able to attend numerous large scale live events right here at Pacific Quay in a way that was not possible in Queen Margaret Drive.

Although this happened at a time when the BBC as a whole was having to be as efficient as possible, following the smaller than expected licence fee settlement, I was excited by the prospect of creating great content for audiences in Scotland and further afield. That we achieved such a technically complex move relatively smoothly says so much for the dedication and expertise of our staff who worked tremendously hard to get to grips with new systems and a new environment.

An important part of our work has been to focus on increasing the amount of our network programming, while raising the quality of our output. Such an approach is also central to the BBC's overall plans to build vibrant, sustainable production centres outside of London.

Indeed, on the day the building was officially opened, the Director-General stated that the value of network programme production from Scotland not only can, but must, grow to a level that is, at least, proportionate to the nation's percentage of the UK population – and that this should be regarded as a 'floor' rather than a 'ceiling'.

The BBC Trust Impartiality Report on news reporting in the nations and regions of the UK and the establishment of the Scottish Broadcasting Commission have seen broadcasting move further into the public spotlight. I firmly believe that BBC Scotland is entering a period of production growth. It has an important contribution to make to Scotland's creative sector and for that reason I very much welcome the public debate which is currently focussed on broadcasting.

Now settled in at Pacific Quay, we are pushing to deliver a wide variety of creative content from our production centres across Scotland over the next few years. In drama, comedy and entertainment, children's, factual, sport and news, our production teams are working on a diverse range of different projects for audiences.

In the year ahead, a number of significant developments will take place. There's the launch of the new Gaelic Digital Service in just a few months' time which we're working on along with our partners in the Gaelic Media Service; there's the digital switchover in the Borders in November; and we have a series of major new programmes planned that we hope will entertain audiences both in Scotland and the UK as a whole.

Our programme-makers have been enthused by the move to PQ – and in particular by the flexibility it provides for content production and the potential it offers to connect more effectively and meaningfully with our audiences. I'm confident that the benefits of our new building will be reflected in our output in the months and years ahead.

It's a hugely exciting time to be working in the broadcasting industry here in Scotland and one we aim to make the most of for the benefit of all our audiences.