The key proposals of the discussion paper include:
- Licence fee payers be given the right of veto over excessive increases to the licence fee, just as they have in the case of Council Tax
- The BBC be asked to publish all invoices over £500 online, as local councils and fire authorities have been asked to do
- Review the arrangements with the National Audit Office (“NAO”) to ensure that the NAO truly can choose which areas of the BBC it investigates and actually does have the right to full access to BBC information in a timely fashion
- Transfer of responsibility for regulation of the accuracy and impartiality of the BBC’s public service broadcasting from the BBC Trust to OFCOM
- A commitment by the BBC Trust to annual reviews of “left v right” political impartiality for the foreseeable future
- Greater openness of senior appointments, including pre-appointment hearings for Director-Generals and all members of the BBC Trust
- Ending the virtual immunity for the BBC under the Freedom of Information Act
- Free access to past content for licence fee payers
- Greater use of “top-slicing” to support public service broadcasting, such as local news, on other channels
Mr Wilson said:
“Like other great public institutions the BBC needs to have a culture of public service at the core of everything it does. Instead, the impunity afforded to it has led instead to a culture of entitlement.
“Tony Hall has important work to do in restoring confidence in the BBC’s newsroom, but a wider and deeper cultural shift is needed to bridge the gap between the BBC and public opinion. That means bringing the BBC in line with the improvements in transparency, financial prudence and democratic accountability that are happening in other public institutions.
“By opening itself up to greater scrutiny, the BBC can focus on really delivering benefits for licence fee payers.”