BBC: The 'iron pole' of public service broadcasting

Lord Tom McNally, deputy leader of the House of Lords, has defended the BBC web site as a vital and innovative part of the corporation's public service remit.

In late August, shadow culture secretary John Whittingdale told Guardian Unlimited that he was 'not persuaded' of the case for a public service web site. He also challenged the role of the BBC site in competing with news services provided by commercial publications.

Lord McNally told dotJournalism that the BBC web site complements the international brand image of the broadcaster and is a legitimate extension of the corporation's service.

"We must be very careful not to allow commercial interests to try to fossilise the BBC by arguing that it should withdraw from certain areas or cease to innovate," he said.

"Part of the success of the BBC has been that it has been both a technical and service innovator and it should have the freedom to continue in that role."

The government recently began a comprehensive review of BBC services, led by former Trinity Mirror chief executive Philip Graf. The BBC's charter - which lays out the funding, regulation and public service role of the broadcaster - is due for renewal in 2006, but Lord McNally is concerned that the charter review process may not be open enough.

"Ideally we would like to see a committee along the lines of the Puttnam Committee which could take evidence in public on what should be the priorities of charter review," he said.

The 2002 Puttnam Committee, in which Lord McNally took part, was a 10-week parliamentary committee of MPs and peers that discussed the government's proposed communications bill.

Culture secretary Andrew McIntosh has stated that before the end of the year, the UK government will detail how it plans to include both public and parliament in the Charter review.

"There is a danger in the wake of the Hutton inquiry to see Charter review as an opportunity to cut the BBC down to size and make it less independent of the government."

He conceded that the BBC does need to modernise, saying that the corporation needs to be more financially accountable and accept limits to its commercial ventures. But Lord McNally says that the licence fee, which costs every household in the UK around £110 each year, is crucial in providing a guarantee of independence and value for money.

"Any alternative to the licence fee would have to carry with it the same guarantees of independence from government pressure.

"The BBC's commercial critics must understand that the British broadcasting market will continue to be distorted by a well-funded public service broadcaster because that is the will of the British people as expressed by their parliament."

The best future for the BBC, according to Lord McNally, would be a cross-party consensus to protect the future of the broadcaster.

"We must recognise the immense benefit to our culture, our democracy, our regional and national identity and our worldwide reputation of the BBC."

See also:
http://www.journalism.co.uk/news/story708.html
http://media.guardian.co.uk/broadcast/story/0,7493,1039422,00.html
http://media.guardian.co.uk/bbc/story/0,7521,1029999,00.html
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/3186071.stm

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