Storm brews over BBC’s Cornish cover-up
Come rain or shine, one thing seemingly guaranteed to upset the locals in Cornwall is the weather forecast itself.
Tourism chiefs say BBC presenters often stand in front of the South West when explaining what is in store for Britain.
That means no one can see what the weather will be like in one of the country’s favourite holiday regions. Worse still, they claim, broad ‘throwaway’ predictions of rain coming in from the West tend to ignore Cornwall’s sunnier, drier climate.
malcolm Bell, chief executive of Visit Cornwall, has complained to the BBC, saying inaccurate forecasts could cost the tourism industry millions of pounds.
He has met the BBC Weather team, includ
‘They stand right in front of our area’
ing BBC Breakfast forecast presenter Carol Kirkwood, to convey his concerns. ‘We complained about the throwaway lines and presenters standing in front of the Isles of Scilly and sometimes west Cornwall,’ he said.
‘The Isles of Scilly are small and precious and we need to keep awareness up about them. Standing right in front of them doesn’t help at all. They are Cornwall’s islands so we feel we need to stand up for them.
‘Weather predominantly comes from the west and often they start with talking about that. Presenters talk about it and move on before giving the correct forecast for the rest of the country. But even if it is wet elsewhere, it is often very different in Cornwall and the weather has already blown through by the time they talk about it.
‘It is especially important around times like easter and this forecast affects people making short breaks. This equates to 25 per cent of our business, so that is £400million a year. Careless weather words can cost money. We don’t want them to lie but just be accurate and instill a bit of caution. This weekend was a classic as it was not as bad as first forecast.’
The BBC said: ‘We welcome feedback from our viewers and know how important it is for our audience to get accurate and up-to-date forecasts. BBC Weather management monitors output and takes viewers’ comments into account as part of the review process.’