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'A Public Service For All' - Jowell Publishes BBC White Paper

030/06

A "unique solution for a unique organisation" with measures to put the licence fee payer at the heart of everything the BBC does,

were set out by Culture Secretary Tessa Jowell today, as she published a white paper on the future of the corporation.

The white paper, A public service for all: the BBC in the digital age, confirms that the BBC will be overseen by a new Trust that is separate from its management and will actively work to ensure the interests of the public are paramount at all times.

Central to this will be ensuring that the cycle of Charter reviews can't dictate the BBC's approach to its services.

In addition, the white paper sets out in further detail how the BBC will be expected to reach a more consensual relationship with the media industry, providing transparency, certainty and clarity where its activities could have an impact on the wider market.

Ms Jowell also urged the BBC to "continue to take fun seriously" in the future, stressing that high quality entertainment remained a vital part of the corporation's mission.

Key points of the white paper, published as part of the on-going review of the BBC's Royal Charter, include:

  • There will be a step change in the way the BBC is run and held to account. The BBC Trust will be a unique organisation that will serve the public interest by ensuring the delivery of quality and value to licence fee payers. The entirely separate, formally constituted Executive Board will be responsible for delivering the BBC's services and will be answerable to the Trust.
  • A 'triple lock' system to ensure the highest standards of accountability, comprising licences issued by the Trust to the Executive Board for running each BBC service, essential characteristics for all content and a 'public value test' to be applied to all new BBC services or significant changes to existing services.
  • The white paper clarifies that whenever the Trust carries out a 'public value test', the media regulator, Ofcom, will be responsible for providing the market impact assessment. To promote the independence of the BBC, powers to approve new services that currently sit with the Secretary of State will be devolved to the Trust. However, the Secretary of State will be able to veto a new public service if the Trust does not follow proper approval procedures.
  • Defining the BBC's purposes more clearly than ever before in order to justify the privilege of the licence fee.
  • A new relationship with the wider market, comprising new ex ante codes in competition related matters, an overhauled fair trading regime and a fair and transparent complaints system.
  • As part of the licence fee settlement, the Government will consider forms of assistance for Channel 4, such as asking the BBC to provide Channel 4 with financial help towards meeting its capital switchover costs, and Channel 4's desire to secure a limited amount of additional digital terrestrial capacity from the BBC.
  • The BBC will act as a 'trusted guide' for the public as technological change gathers pace, particularly through the process of switchover to digital only television between 2008 and 2012. This will be enshrined in an additional purpose of Building Digital Britain.
  • Confirmation that there will be a 'window of creative competition' that will open up a further proportion of the BBC's content to competition from in-house, independent and other external producers. This will run alongside an 'indie' guarantee – the proportion of commissions that the BBC must offer exclusively to independent production companies. The new system will ensure that there is sufficient in-house production to safeguard the BBC's wider public service broadcasting role in areas such as training, technological research and development and regional production.

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Ms Jowell said:

"The BBC white paper sets out a unique solution, for a unique organisation, in a unique set of circumstances – a genuine public service for all in the digital age.

"The Trust will be the voice, eyes and ears of licence fee payers. Every move it makes should be informed by their views and interests.

"Central to this will be ensuring that the BBC delivers consistent quality and value for money to the licence fee payer, regardless of what stage in the Charter period it is.

"And it will simultaneously have to form a more consensual relationship with the wider industry, providing certainty, clarity and transparency about its business wherever possible.

"Furthermore I want to see the BBC continue to take fun seriously, ensuring that quality entertainment is engrained into its services wherever possible, while not chasing ratings but providing something new, innovative and distinctively BBC.

"If it succeeds in meeting the aims set out in the white paper – and I am sure it will - the BBC will thrive and prosper over the next 10 years and beyond."

The white paper confirms that the licence fee will continue for the 10-year lifetime of the next Charter. It also confirms that there will be reviews in the future into the scope for other methods of funding the BBC beyond 2016 and the possibility of distributing public funding more widely to other broadcasters.

The Government is currently considering the level of the new licence fee settlement, due to come into force in April 2007. The white paper states that, as with the current licence fee settlement, it expects the BBC to achieve a large part of its funding itself through 'self-help', including efficiency, improvements in licence fee collection and enforcement, and commercial revenue.

In addition, the relationship between the BBC and the National Audit Office (NAO) will be strengthened within the existing agreement.  The white paper welcomes the BBC's commitment to invite the NAO to consider the extent to which future "self-help" targets are being met. It also states that the NAO should be able to play a full part in discussions with the Trust about which areas should be subject to value for money reviews, and have the information necessary to do so.

There will be further opportunity for comment on the white paper and draft Charter and Agreement, in addition to Parliamentary debate. This follows two previous stages of extensive public consultation.

Ms Jowell added:

"More than ever before, the public has shaped the future of the BBC during this Charter review. That is only right, they pick up the bill. The industry has also had a major say. They share an increasingly crowded market place with the BBC and their views have been fully considered."

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Notes to Editors

1. The BBC's current Charter expires at the end of 2006. The new Charter and Agreement will be finalised later this year.

2. The green paper, white paper, draft Charter and Agreement and regulatory impact assessment can be accessed at www.bbccharterreview.org.uk.

3. Also published today are three reports on the green paper consultation - two summarising industry and public repsonses and one summarising research into BBC governance, accountability and arrangements for the collection and enforcement of the licence fee. These can also be accessed at www.bbccharterreview.org.uk.

4. Comments on the white paper should be directed to:

E-mail: bbccharterreview@culture.gsi.gov.uk

Post:  BBC Charter Review Consultation
 Department for Culture, Media and Sport
 2-4 Cockspur Street
 London
 SW1Y 5DH

By telephone: 0207 211 6200

For further information visit www.bbccharterreview.org.uk  

Closing date for comments: Friday 28 April 2006

5. The BBC's Royal Charter is a formal document granted under the Royal prerogative, establishing the BBC and defining its general objectives and functions.  It is supported by the Agreement between the BBC and the Government, which sets out how the BBC will meet its general obligations, the services it will provide, and the standards it will meet. The current Charter and Agreement can be accessed at http://www.bbc.co.uk/info/policies/charter/ . The first Charter was granted in 1927. Since then reviews have been carried out about every 10 years. The current Royal Charter is the eighth in the history of the BBC.

6. The BBC provides the following publicly funded services:

  • TV channels – BBC1 and BBC2, BBC 3 and BBC4, CBeebies, CBBC, BBC News 24 and BBC Parliament.
  • Radio services – Radio1, Radio2, Radio 3, Radio 4, Radio Five Live, Five Live Sports Xtra, Radio 1Xtra, BBC6 Music, BBC7 and BBC Asian Network, as well as 38 local radio stations and a further six stations covering the nations.
  • BBCi – the BBC's interactive services, including online services, interactive text and interactive digital television.
  • Services in the nations and regions – BBC Scotland, BBC Northern Ireland, BBC Wales and BBC English Regions.

7. In addition, the BBC runs a number of commercial services, including BBC Worldwide Ltd and BBC Ventures Ltd.

Press Enquiries: 020 7211 6052/6277
Out of hours telephone pager no: 07699 751153
Public Enquiries: 020 7211 6200

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