BBC axes Andrew Neil Show as job losses increase to 520
THE BBC is to strip Radio 4 of reporters and presenters, and end The Andrew Neil Show, as part of a new round of job cuts.
Staff were informed yesterday via a video message that the previously announced 450 losses in the news department would be increased to 520.
The corporation confirmed that Neil, who in a recent interview voiced fears that he was “surplus to requirements”, will not be returning as a presenter of Politics Live and his eponymous interview programme has been cancelled. Politics Live will continue without him.
Fran Unsworth, the BBC’S director of news and current affairs, said the number of reporters and presenters would be reduced, and the remaining correspondents would be required to work across different programmes.
The cuts apply across television and radio, but Radio 4 staff fear that they will be hardest hit. An insider said: “By taking away our correspondents, there is a fear that the distinctiveness of Radio 4 will be lost.
“And there is a suspicion that Radio 4 is seen as ‘heritage’ radio for the old and privileged, at a time when the BBC is chasing younger viewers and concentrating on digital.” Ms Unsworth told staff that a number of digital journalists would move into the newsgathering team and be deployed on stories, with a focus on breaking stories online.
She said: “For BBC News to thrive, and for us to continue to serve all our audiences, we have to change.”
On the World Service, The World This Week will be decommissioned and the BBC will launch an Africa-focused podcast. Across the BBC, there will be “significant” cuts to operations staff.
The BBC blamed the losses on the pressures caused by Covid-19, and said they would include management posts.
The cuts are part of a plan to hit an £850 million savings target by 2022. They were first announced in January but postponed due to the pandemic. Now staff have been told they will enter a redundancy consultation period.
A BBC spokesman said the broadcaster “remains committed to Andrew Neil’s in-depth interviews” and was in talks with him about a new series.