BBC World Service ‘jammed in China’

Broadcaster condemns move

LONDON, Feb 25, (AFP): The BBC said Monday that its World Service shortwave radio broadcasts in English are being jammed in China in a deliberate move by the authorities there to cause “maximum disruption”.

“The BBC strongly condemns this action which is designed to disrupt audiences’ free access to news and information,” the world’s largest broadcaster said in a statement. The corporation added that while it was not possible to determine the source of the blocking, “extensive and coordinated efforts are indicative of a well-resourced country such as China”.

The BBC said its satellite services had been jammed on pressing for greater transparency of pension charges after the auto-enrolment scheme started in October 2012.

In January, the ABI said it would force its pension and insurance company members that run some of the UK’s biggest pension schemes to reveal fees and charges taken from employees’ retirement pots.

The size of an employee’s pension under a defined contribution scheme is determined by the size of contributions made into the pension, the performance of the several occasions over the last couple of years. Shortwave jamming is less common but has previously hit the broadcaster’s Persian broadcasts in Iran.

“The jamming of shortwave transmissions is being timed to cause maximum disruption to BBC World Service English broadcasts in China,” said Peter Horrocks, director of BBC Global News.

“The deliberate and co-ordinated efforts by authorities in countries such as China and Iran illustrate the significance and importance of the role the BBC undertakes to provide impartial and accurate information to audiences around the world.” investments in the scheme and the cost of an annuity at retirement.

The PQM was launched by the NAPF in September 2009, with pension schemes such as the BBC, L’Oreal and PepsiCo all signed up to the benchmark.

Pension contributions under PQM must equal at least 10 percent of an employee’s salary, with a minimum employer contribution of 6 percent of salary.

The NAPF said the change would come into force in April 2013.