Listeners ‘in tears over unfair’ cuts to BBC local radio, MPS told
THE BBC’S local radio cuts will punish lower-paid employees, while Gary Lineker can do “jobs galore”, a former Tory minister has said.
MPS yesterday debated the decision by the broadcaster to strip stations of local programmes during afternoons, evenings and weekends, replacing them with shared regional or national shows. Sir Mike Penning, a former Conservative minister, said it is “unfair” on people who work in BBC local radio that some cannot take work elsewhere while Lineker, the football pundit, can do multiple jobs.
The MP for Hemel Hempstead said some constituents “are literally in tears that some of the presenters on their local radio station in my part of the world have been given pre-redundancy notices before Christmas, telling them that they should apply for their own jobs, and in some cases those jobs are not going to be there”.
He said people in local radio had told him “it’s not a level playing field” because the “vast majority” cannot undertake another job in broadcasting.
He added: “What we do know about Gary Lineker’s contract is that not only does he do advertisements for a certain crisps company, but actually works on BT Sport as well.
“I’m not picking on Gary Lineker. I just think it’s unfair on our local radio people that are prevented from having a job now while he can [do] jobs galore.”
Sir Mike said that he had “declared other interests outside this House, that’s within my contract”, but said for people in local radio “they cannot work in other ways”.
Addressing potential cuts to BBC local radio, he said: “It is for this House to send a message to the BBC that they have got it fundamentally wrong to attack the low-hanging fruit of our local radio presenters without understanding the damage that is going to do to our communities around the country.”
Other MPS said the decision would damage a service that is at the heart of local democracy.
Anna Firth, Conservative MP for Southend West, paid tribute to her local BBC radio station for the sensitive coverage of the murder of her predecessor Sir David Amess.