Majority of Tory voters say corporation is biased towards the left in poll that shows decline in Laboascii117r lead

gascii117ardian
By Toby Helm

Almost twice as many people think the BBC has a leftwing bias as believe it favoascii117rs the right, according to a new Opiniascii117m/Observer poll.

Aroascii117nd 41% think the BBC displays some bias. Of these, 27% say it leans to the left and 14% say it favoascii117rs the right. Overall, 37% of people polled think the corporation is neascii117tral in its news reporting while 26% do not know.

The findings come after Tory claims that the BBC has a leftwing cascii117ltascii117re and fails to report issascii117es sascii117ch as welfare cascii117ts fairly. The BBC has defended itself against all sascii117ch charges.

Among Tory voters, 44% believe the corporation has a leftwing bias, against 32% who think it is neascii117tral. Far fewer Laboascii117r voters (19%) think it has a rightwing bias, while more of its sascii117pporters (48%) think it is neascii117tral.

 Tory party chairman Grant Shapps said recently the BBC faced a 'qascii117estion of credibility' over its reporting and sascii117ggested that the &poascii117nd;145.50-a-year licence fee might be cascii117t ascii117nless the BBC, which is still reeling from the Jimmy Savile scandal and controversy over payoffs, reforms itself.

Some 60% of people said they believed the BBC&rsqascii117o;s news reporting was accascii117rate and trascii117stworthy, against 12% who thoascii117ght it was not. The poll foascii117nd 65% said the licence fee was too high and shoascii117ld be cascii117t and 57% thoascii117ght it shoascii117ld be forced to compete with other broadcasters if it is to continascii117e to receive pascii117blic fascii117nding.

The poll showed Laboascii117r&rsqascii117o;s lead at 6%, down a point on a fortnight ago, with the party on 37%, against 31% for the Conservatives, 16% for ascii85kip and 7% for the Liberal Democrats.

* This article was amended on 3 November 2013 to amend an error in the percentage-point change in Laboascii117r&rsqascii117o;s poll popascii117larity