MPs reject BBC privatisation

A Parliamentary Committee has advised the government to reject plans for a sell-off of BBC Resources and Worldwide.

The Select Committee on Culture Media and Sport, which issued a report on the BBC today (December 20), has recommended that proposals to sell all of BBC Resources Limited, and 49% of BBC Worldwide, should be dropped.

Their recommendation came after six weeks of Committee hearings, where the panel of backbench MPs, chaired by Gerald Kaufman, took evidence from a range of individuals and institutions including BECTU.

Despite voicing many criticisms of the BBC during their discussions, the Committee accepted the views of witnesses who argued that privatisation could increase costs in the long term, and would deprive the Corporation of income from commercial activities.

However, in the case of BBC Worldwide, the Committee warned that "the BBC must prove its capacity for much greater increases in net cash flow from BBC Worldwide".

The Committee's report is due to be considered by Culture Minister Chris Smith over the Christmas holiday, along with another report from a team of accountants who have spent the last month assessing the financial impact of the many recommendations in the Gavyn Davies report on BBC funding published in August.

Chris Smith is due to announce his final decision on BBC privatisation, and the future of the licence fee, in early January.