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Nottingham could be in line for its own local television stations under plans announced by the government.

The city is the only East Midlands location among 20 UK towns and cities to have been named "pioneer areas" by culture secretary Jeremy Hunt. The final 20 have been whittled down from a shortlist of 65 locations.

The government said the areas were identified as having good local spectrum coverage and "significant levels" of interest from potential operators and audiences. Ofcom will now consult on the areas and its proposed licensing process.

Hunt said: "Local TV will be a fundamental change in broadcasting in this country, meeting a real demand for local news and content. We are now putting in place the measures needed to establish a series of commercially viable local TV stations.

"I am confident these new stations will provide local communities with programming which is relevant to their daily lives, will support local democracy, boost the big society and enhance local communities."

The government said it was now taking "a number of steps" to create a statutory framework for licensing that would allow for transmission infrastructure to be built and the local TV services to start operating.

It also intends to examine whether independent television production companies should be allowed to bid for local TV licences. Current rules, designed to ensure a buoyant independent production sector, would prevent an independent producer from owning more than 25 per cent of a local TV licence.