MINISTER BLASTS BBC OVER SHOW’S BIAS

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DOWNING Street has fired a shot across the bows of the BBC by warning the Corporation that it risks losing the public’s confidence after a series of controversies about political bias.

Culture Secretary Oliver Dowden has written to BBC director-general Tony Hall to urge him to ‘uphold the highest standards in relation to integrity and impartiality’ in the wake of a Panorama programme critical of the Government’s handling of Covid-19.

It was revealed after the broadcast that the medical professionals interviewed on the programme were Left-wing activists.

The highly unusual Cabinet-level intervention also comes after the Corporation was forced to apologise for claiming the director of an NHS trust had asked the BBC to put him in touch with fashion house Burberry to urgently source protective gowns for health workers.

The a nonymous ‘ NHS boss’ accused Health Secretary Matt Hancock of ‘fantasy’ claims. But after viewers started to harbour suspicions and place them on social media – many expressed surprise that a well-remunerated NHS chief would be forced to resort to calling the BBC to find out a phone number – the Corporation admitted that the caller had not been in charge of a trust. In its apology, the BBC said the item ‘clearly did not meet the BBC’s editorial standards’.

Relations between the Government and the BBC have been strained since the Election, when No 10 accused the Corporation of persistent bias – including an on-air monologue from Andrew Neil criticising Boris Johnson for his refusal to be interviewed.

It led to a Downing Street boycott of Radio 4’s Today programme, which was only lifted when the Covid-19 crisis struck.

In his letter, excerpts from which are published right, Mr Dowden says that, while respecting the editorial independence of the BBC, he is sure Lord Hall ‘will agree that at a time of heightened risk of misinformation and disinformation, it is more important than ever that the BBC upholds the values and standards we all expect.

‘The public should be able to turn to the BBC for transparent, unimpeachable, reliable news’.

After referencing the Panorama and Burberry items, Mr Dowden says: ‘I am sure you will agree that it is vital that public confidence is maintained in the BBC’s long-standing reputation for fair and balanced reporting, and that any damage to that would be deeply concerning.’

Last night, a senior Government source said: ‘The director-general needs to get a personal grip of this so the BBC quickly get its house in order.

‘ There is a worrying pattern emerging of the BBC not doing its homework and presenting partisan contributors as impartial. Viewers need to trust what they see.’

Mr Dowden shares the view of Boris Johnson’s team in Downing Street that the BBC lacks ‘diversity of thought’ and has failed to understand the strength of feeling among pro-Brexit voters in particular.

He has been tasked with overhauling the Corporation’s ‘narrow urban outlook’, and reviewing whet h e r a l t e r n a t i v e funding arrangements to the licence fee should be explored when its Royal Charter comes up for renewal in 2027. The Government is already consulting on proposals to decriminalise non-payment of the licence fee and is preparing for a mid-term review of the Charter. The row comes as the BBC has claimed what it says are record audiences for its news programmes during t he pandemic, with up to 11.7 million viewers watching the BBC’s news channel and audiences for BBC1 bulletins up by nearly a third.

The epidemic has forced the BBC to temporarily abandon its plan to end free TV licences for the over-75s.