Smith warns BBC of serious shake-up
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.The BBC faces a serious shake- up in the way it is run after the Government hinted that it may strip the BBC governors of their powers and issued its strongest warning yet about the corporation's accountability.
Chris Smith, Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, said yesterday that in the long term the Board of Governors might be absorbed into a new regulatory body that will cover the television and telecommunications industries.
"In the longer term the BBC structure and regulation are matters which will form part of a review. There is a good case for looking at whether the regulatory framework at the moment is the best one," he said.
Shortly before the general election the Labour Party swiftly disowned a policy by the then shadow broadcasting spokesman, Lewis Moonie, that it would weaken the governors' powers by creating an Office of Communications. This would have absorbed the programme regulation and viewer complaint duties of the governors, the Independent Television Commission and Oftel.
Mr Smith also reminded the broadcaster never to lose sight of its public service duty.
He told a meeting of the Broadcasting Press Guild: "My first objective is trying to find ways of making the governors more accountable. Now the Secretary of State meets with the governors once a year in a country retreat. He gets a slot in which he appears deus ex machina, gives them a talk over dinner and then goes away again."
He now plans two formal meetings a year, the contents of which will be published, and changes to the way governors are appointed, to remove the old-boy network. The post of vice chairman and two other governors will be advertised - "and not through 19th-hole conversations that have perhaps tended to happen in the past".
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments