BBC Trust

Today, the Government has published its White Paper on the BBC. Speaking on behalf of all Trustees, Chairman Rona Fairhead said:

"Constructive engagement between the Government, the BBC and the public has delivered a White Paper that sets good principles, strengthens the BBC’s governance and regulation and cements a financial settlement that will sustain the strong BBC that is loved and admired by the public."

BBC Trust assessment of the White Paper proposals

The public have been clear they want a BBC that delivers something for everyone, that informs and entertains as well as educates, that is popular as well as distinctive – and a BBC that above all else is independent.

Particular elements of the Government’s White Paper that are welcome include:

• Providing long-term certainty through an 11-year Charter;
• Updating and clarifying the BBC’s public purposes for the benefit of all audiences;
• Supporting its enduring mission to inform, educate and entertain, with a wide range of services and content that are popular as well as distinctive;
• Recognising that the BBC must remain independent.

We are concerned, however, that in some areas the Government’s proposals to protect the BBC’s independence do not go far enough. When drafting the new Charter, the Government must provide sufficient guarantees that its future decisions about the BBC – in particular on funding and the appointments to the Board – are made clearly and transparently and without compromising the BBC’s independence.

Our focus now will be to work through the detail with Government, the BBC and Ofcom and ensure the independence that the public value so highly is protected.

During the Charter process, the Trust has been pushing for three principles:

1. What the public want

The public have been clear they want high quality programmes and services and a BBC that delivers something for everyone.

The White Paper supports this principle; now the new Charter needs to guarantee this universal service, supported by the licence fee, with a large variety of content that is widely available. There are welcome moves by BBC management to improve diversity and portrayal which will benefit audiences in the UK’s nations and regions.

The Trust has consistently encouraged a more distinctive BBC, which is creatively and editorially ambitious. We will work closely with the Government on the detail of how the new system can be implemented to make sure regulation does not come at the cost of stifling responsiveness, creativity and what the BBC does best – making great programmes.

 2.  Independence of the BBC

The Government recognises that the independence of the BBC is vital and we are pleased the White Paper has committed to an 11-year Charter, separating the process from electoral cycles, and that an unambiguous duty has been placed on the new BBC directors to uphold the BBC’s independence.

There are areas where we will continue to make the case to Government, as it drafts the Charter, that more should be done to underline the guarantees of independence:

• The new Board must hold BBC management to account on behalf of the public and act independently of politicians. We recognise the Government’s moves to allow independent appointments for the first time ever. 

While there are many things we strongly back and endorse in the White Paper, the current proposals for the unitary board require further consideration. In terms of the process we think the chairman and deputy chairman should be appointed by the Government through an independent public appointments process.  After that, we want a board that is the right size, with the right balance of skills and the right talents, appointed in the right way.

Speaking specifically on this issue, Rona Fairhead, BBC Chairman, said:

"We recognise that the Government has moved, but we need to debate these issues to ensure the arrangements for the Board achieve the correct balance of independence, public oversight and operational effectiveness.  We believe there is more than enough time to get this right, and we will continue to discuss this with the Government.”

• Decisions about funding must be transparent – setting down the funding duration and process in the Charter is a good step, but the process should also include a commitment for the Government to set out its proposals before it takes a formal decision.

• Mid-term health check – while we accept that a health check of the reforms to governance and regulation is sensible, we will want to be sure that no future government could interpret this as a mechanism to initiate a broader Charter Review.

• It is right that the BBC will be independently regulated. Ofcom are an effective and independent body to do this, however, they will need to evolve their approach, so that the bespoke, qualitative regulation that Sir David Clementi’s review called for is delivered. The BBC is a unique institution and its regulation is a unique challenge – the system of regulation that takes effect at the start of 2017 must be carefully tailored to addressing these challenges, as well as to maintaining a balance between robust oversight and allowing innovation and creativity to flourish.

3.  Agreement on funding

We welcome the confirmation in the White Paper of the BBC’s funding settlement until 2021, including confirmation that the BBC will be able to make use of all the licence fee. The Government has committed that the licence fee will rise in line with inflation for the duration of the Charter. In addition to moves earlier this year to close the iPlayer loophole, this means that the Government remains committed to the deal agreed in July last year

Next steps

It is the drafting of the next Charter and Agreement that will implement the White Paper proposals and there is a lot of detail for the Government, the BBC and Ofcom to work through in order to get these drafted. We welcome the government’s commitment to debates in Parliament. The existing Charter ends on 31 December and we will work until then to ensure a smooth transition to the new arrangements.

It is vital that the final Charter and Agreement delivers a strong independent system of Governance, that attracts wide support and can deliver what licence fee payers want now and over the coming 11 years.

 If you would like to tell us what you think about the Government's White Paper, or the Trust's response to it, please do get in touch.