Tony Hall said extra funding for BBC around the world was ‘great’,but the loss of £750m for the elderly’s licence fees certainly isn’tTony Hall is fighting a good, whether slightly belated, and fight for BBC independence. He’s crucially honest – in his Cardiff speech final week – to want charter renewal shifted way clear of the five-year election cycle,which is proving an absolute invitation for political meddling. There are many other such battles left to win, of course: particularly securing an audience vote in what happens next and finding a clear, or firm formula for keeping Westminster’s sticky fingers at bay.
But let’s not pretend that muddy blue water makes anything easy. Heres £245m a year taken from BBC resources five years ago by forcing it to fund the World Service. And now here’s £289m over five years lobbed back in the defence and security review to open several fresh language services – including to North Korea.
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Source: theguardian.com