BBC director-general Matt Brittin has announced that 550 of the planned 1,800 to 2,000 job cuts at the corporation will be taken from BBC News and TV and radio-related roles. The 57-year-old has also announced the BBC is to axe programmes and cut content spending by £80 million, and added it would “review our broadcast TV channels and radio network portfolio” as more of its audience moves online, while attempting to sustain “output” and “audience value and impact”.
The BBC has not indicated which programmes would be axed under the plans. Job cuts will also impact around 700 corporate roles, as the BBC attempts to make £500 million in savings over two years, with job cuts announced in April set to take place over the next three years. The director-general said in an email to staff it is hoped cuts and savings in BBC News and further TV and radio areas will make £160 million in cost savings.
Mr Brittin told staff in the email: “The scale of savings requires tough choices, careful work and won’t all be ready at once. We are committed to letting you know as soon as we have plans in your area. All divisions will be making significant savings… We live in very uncertain times. Our audiences rely on us every day to keep them informed, entertained and equipped to make sense of the world.” He added that the BBC would be reducing senior leaders by “at least” 10% to make it “simpler and faster”.
In response, head of media and entertainment union Bectu, Philippa Childs, said it is “far from ideal” that the cuts are taking place at the same time as the BBC’s charter renewal. She said: “I’m not sure how you can make informed decisions about the long-term future of the organisation when it will be in a substantially diminished place at the end of the process than the beginning. In an era of fake news and an industry that is becoming more concentrated in the hands of a few multinational corporations, the UK needs a confident, ambitious and sustainably-funded BBC more than ever.”
Childs added: “Ten per cent cuts when real terms income from the licence fee is already down £1.3 billion in the last decade is significant and will affect the BBC’s ability to deliver its public service mission. It seems clear that cuts will have a direct impact on programming and output, and audiences will also notice the effects.” Brittin will host an all-staff call next Tuesday at 2pm to take questions.
