Ex-Mail editor ‘lined up for top job at media watchdog’
Dacre is Ofcom ‘preferred choice’ as Moore poised for top BBC job
FORMER Daily Mail editor Paul Dacre has been lined up by Boris Johnson to be the next chairman of media regulator Ofcom, it was reported yesterday.
It comes as ex-Daily Telegraph editor Charles Moore is set to become the new chairman of the BBC. The two moves would represent a huge shake-up by ministers of the media establishment.
Mr Dacre, 71, is reported to be the Prime Minister’s favoured candidate to replace Lord Burns, who is due to leave Ofcom by the end of the year. It is understood that Mr Dacre, who edited the Daily Mail for 26 years up to 2018, was courted for the role by Mr Johnson in February over drinks at Downing Street and is the preferred choice. He is reportedly in talks with No10.
According to sources, he is ‘keen’ to take up the job but wants assurances about freedom and independence. Meanwhile,
Lord Moore, 63, a Brexiteer and biographer of Margaret Thatcher, has been invited by Mr Johnson to be the new BBC chairman.
The former Daily and Sunday Telegraph and Spectator editor, who was once fined for refusing to pay the TV licence fee, has been a vocal critic of the corporation.
His appointment is said to be nearly a ‘done deal’, with Lord Moore and Mr Johnson meeting a month ago for talks. There are still said to be discussions ongoing about his contract. However, civil servants have been trying to delay the appointment amid concerns that the job has not been advertised as part of an open selection procedure, according to reports.
Yesterday Culture Secretary Oliver Dowden said a ‘process’ for both the BBC and Ofcom roles would be launched shortly. He told Sky News the Government was looking for a
‘Huge challenge to establishment’
‘strong, big person who can hold the BBC to account’ and it was important there was ‘genuine, robust scrutiny’ of the corporation.
He added that ‘strong credible people’ were needed to fill both roles. He said there were ‘strengths’ to both Lord Moore and Mr Dacre.
Allies of Mr Johnson reportedly feel that the civil service selection process has in the past led to ‘members of the same Left-wing cabal’ getting these types of jobs.
Previous chief executives at Ofcom include Lord Carter, who went on to work for Gordon Brown’s government, and former Labour and BBC figure Ed Richards.
If the appointments of Mr Dacre and Lord Moore go ahead, it would represent a huge challenge to the traditional broadcasting establishment and provide a much sterner examination of the way the BBC operates. Lord Moore has been a strong critic of the corporation’s ‘Left-wing woke values’.
Ofcom is set to be a central part of the Government’s moves to rein in US online giants like Facebook, which have damaged traditional media companies. The Mail on Sunday reported that Mr Dacre was wooed for the job because of his record in fighting for Press freedom and due to his strong commitment to tackling the growing powers of the huge digital companies.
He was a key figure in the editorial launch of MailOnline, the largest English language newspaper website in the world.
On the potential appointment of Lord Moore, a government spokesman said: ‘We will launch the application process for the new chair of the BBC shortly.
‘It is an open recruitment process and all public appointments are subject to a robust and fair selection criteria.’