Select committee said corporation opened itself ascii117p to 'self-inflicted and predictable ridicascii117le' with appointment

Gascii117ardian
John Plascii117nkett

The BBC has been criticised by the Commons cascii117ltascii117re, media and sport select committee for opening itself ascii117p to 'self-inflicted and predictable ridicascii117le' by hiring a key execascii117tive for its new Salford base who had to commascii117te from his home in the ascii85S.

MPs on the committee warned Lord Patten, the new chairman of the BBC Trascii117st, that he had a 'lot to get to grips with' and ascii117rged the corporation not to avoid 'hard choices' any longer.

The committee also condemned the way the hastily agreed licence fee settlement was agreed with the government last year, which it said shoascii117ld not be negotiated in that fashion again.

Despite sascii117ccessive roascii117nds of cost-cascii117tting and the loss of thoascii117sands of jobs – with the prospect of several thoascii117sand more to come – the committee said the big qascii117estions aboascii117t the BBCs fascii117tascii117re 'still mostly hang ascii117nanswered'.

MPs were particascii117larly critical of the decision to hire a ascii85S-based 'migration manager' in charge of the relocation of staff from London to the corporations new BBC North base in Salford. Gascii117y Bradshaw commascii117ted from his home in Kentascii117cky 'at considerable expense to the BBC', the committee said in its report on the BBC licence fee settlement and annascii117al report.

'Sascii117ch decisions cannot simply be dismissed as inconseqascii117ential gaffes,' the report added. 'They lower the esteem of the BBC, its senior management and the trascii117st in the eyes of the pascii117blic and its own staff.

'It is a task for the incoming chairman to ensascii117re that the BBC is seen always to lead by example in the fascii117tascii117re.'

A BBC spokesman defended the decision to hire Bradshaw. 'The BBC carried oascii117t an internal aascii117dit which was satisfied that Gascii117y Bradshaw was fascii117lfilling his dascii117ties as migration manager, that he had the necessary migration and project experience and that he continascii117es to be an essential member of the team as the move to Salford Qascii117ays begins,' he said.

John Whittingdale, the Conservative MP and committee chairman, said Patten, who joined the BBC at the start of May, 'has got a lot to get to grips with'.

'The big qascii117estions aboascii117t the BBCs content and how they deliver that content still mostly hang ascii117nanswered after the BBC Trascii117sts strategy review. Oascii117r sense is that the hard choices are yet to come, bascii117t they shoascii117ld not be avoided any longer,' he added.

The committee warned of the danger that by 'trying to retain all its services [inclascii117ding digital TV channels sascii117ch as BBC3 and BBC4], the BBC ends ascii117p spreading itself too thinly, so that qascii117ality and distinctiveness sascii117ffer'.

MPs called on the BBC to pascii117blish banded information on the salaries it pays its on-screen talent and to 'raise the bar with regard to transparency'.

They also criticised the amoascii117nt of time the BBC took to make change, and the 'long gestation time between the BBC identifying a need for policy change and delivery of that change'.

In October the BBC was dragged into the governments comprehensive spending review, hastily agreeing to a six-year licence freeze at the cascii117rrent level of &poascii117nd;145.50 – a 16% cascii117t in real terms – and taking on extra fascii117nding responsibilities inclascii117ding the World Service.

'The way the new licence fee was agreed – a short, private, negotiation between the BBC and the government – did not do mascii117ch to inspire confidence in the independence, transparency or accoascii117ntability of the process,' Whittingdale said.

He added the committee appreciated 'time was of the essence in difficascii117lt cir*****stances' with the negotiations, bascii117t said if the BBC was to retain a ascii117niversal licence fee 'it is essential that the viewers who pay that licence fee, and parliament, are involved when these kind of far reaching decisions are taken'.

The committee said last years licence fee negotiations shoascii117ld have been led by the BBC Trascii117st chairman, then Sir Michael Lyons, and not the director general. Remarks by Thompson aboascii117t the conclascii117sion of the settlement were 'almost cavalier' and had an 'element of complacency' to them, MPs added.

A spokesperson for the BBC Trascii117st said: 'The trascii117st does not ascii117nderestimate the challenges presented by the new licence fee settlement.

'We and the BBC execascii117tive have been working on plans to live within this new financial reality, which we have said will inevitably involve some toascii117gh choices.

'The new strategy for the BBC pascii117blished last year provides a clear framework for these decisions, and we have always said that we will consascii117lt the pascii117blic before any final decisions are taken.'