Parliamentary Broadcasting Unit (PBU)

What we do

The PBU is based at 1 Canon Row in London and produces all coverage of the Commons and Lords chambers and committee meetings, in conjunction with Parliament’s Sound and Vision contractor NEP Bow Tie. This coverage is supplied to BBC Parliament as well as broadcasters and media outlets across the world. The PBU is responsible for more live TV than any other British broadcaster.

The PBU also processes licences and orders for publishers and production companies buying footage from the Parliamentary video and audio archive. In 2020, a record high of over 65,000 video and audio downloads of Parliamentary proceedings were requested through the PBU’s on demand service Parliament Live.

Parliament Live

The PBU provides an on-demand service called Parliament Live, which has an archive that goes back to December 2007. You can use Parliament Live to find audio and video coverage of all public business from across the Commons and Lords chambers and committees of UK Parliament.

Over 3 million viewers watched video on Parliament Live in 2020. The most-watched business item in 2020 was the second reading of the UK Internal Market Bill on 14 September which was viewed by over 54,000 people and was also broadcast live by BBC News, BBC Parliament and Sky News.

British Sign Language and live subtitling

Parliament Live already provides British Sign Language interpretation of Prime Minister’s Questions every week as well as other major statements of acute national significance.

Subtitling is also available for all Commons and Lords chamber business on Parliament Live. These services are part of UK Parliament's ongoing commitment to providing access to Parliament to a wider audience.