BBC splashes your cash to entertain violent cons
VIOLENT inmates at a Scottish prison were treated to a performance by the BBC’s £6million-ayear orchestra in a move criticised by campaigners and politicians.
The BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra played a concert for 55 prisoners at HMP Low Moss near Glasgow as part of an outreach programme.
The cost of the orchestra is mostly met from the licence fee and the BBC was accused of ‘squandering’ money by staging the performance of ‘classical and contemporary music’.
Scottish Conservative justice spokesman Russell Findlay said: ‘Perhaps the BBC might instead consider staging concerts for forgotten victims of crime or other vulnerable and law-abiding sections of society.’
Rebecca Ryan, campaign director of Defund the BBC, said: ‘This is another slap in the face to licence fee payers and the victims of these criminals.
‘Many licence fee payers can’t afford to pay to watch the BBC Symphony Orchestra.
‘At the same time, the BBC is squandering their hard-earned money on entertaining some of the most dangerous criminals in the country. It is yet another example of how out of touch the BBC is with the British public.’
The BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra was founded in 1935 and has toured the world at an annual cost of £6million.
In March, the musicians played in a Scottish prison for ‘the first time’, with a concert at Low Moss, a jail for male prisoners on remand and serving sentences up to life terms.
The Scottish Prison Service shared a post about the concert on its website, which read: ‘Low Moss hosted the orchestra last month with 55 people in our care, as well as staff, able to enjoy a range of music. Each piece was introduced and explained, giving an insight to genres most had never experienced before.’
One of the attendees was quoted as saying: ‘The music was amazing and it was so unusual compared to anything else I have attended in prison.’
Joanna Marchong, of the TaxPayers’ Alliance, said: ‘With the BBC prioritising Beethoven behind bars, it’s no surprise people are opting out of paying the hated TV tax.’