ITN boss calls for more BBC outsourcing ahead of crunch white paper
The BBC should use its “incredible position as a buying power” to boost outside TV production companies, the head of ITN has said.
John Hardie told Morning Wire programmes such as Newsnight should be put out to tender.
His comments come ahead of Thursday’s publication of a new white paper setting out the next BBC royal charter arrangements.
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The government is expected to propose a number of changes to the way the BBC is run, including the need for more programme-making to be outsourced.
“We’re not opposed to the BBC. In fact, I look at the BBC as a big potential client,” Hardie told Morning Wire “I want to see a BBC which is healthy and thriving and using their incredible position as a buying power for independent producers like us.”
In the last year, Hardie estimates that ITN – which produces news programmes for ITV, Channel 4 and Channel 5 – has generated less than £1m from BBC production. “So there’s a lot of headroom for growth,” he said.
While he expects more BBC content to be put out to tender, Hardie is concerned that BBC Studios – a proposed new commercial production arm – could be given an advantage when applying to create programming.
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Hardie wants not only to see in-house production guarantees ended, but also the creation of a “level playing field”.
“I’m not saying we want to go and bid for Doctor Who any time soon,” he said. “But programming that we can make, we want to make sure that there’s no reason why they couldn’t pick ITN.”
He added: “We’re not particularly advocating that BBC should let us pitch for BBC Ten O’Clock News or Six O’Clock News – I think they’re probably quite happy with that. I mean, Newsnight is definitely a programme that could be made by an independent company… I’m not advocating we’d do that either… I think it would be very interesting, a take on Newsnight, what an independent producer would do with that.”
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Media analysts from Enders Analysis, Liberum and Peel Hunt have told Morning Wire they expect the white paper to weaken the BBC, with the corporation facing the potential prospect of greater government involvement, online cut-backs and programmes being rescheduled to suit rivals.
Peel Hunt’s Alex De Groote said the white paper could see the BBC “significantly diminished in terms of its scope of activities”. He said: “That will play out in terms of reduced budgets, reduced programming, reduced ability to win what’s left of live sports.”
He added: “The BBC’s has had a very good run from about 1998 to 2011/12: massive expansion, lots of radio services, big online services. And it was to the detriment of the commercial sector. Well, now the boot’s on the other foot.”
Philip Davies, a Tory MP who wants to see the abolition of the licence fee, does not expect the government's white paper to go far enough in reining in the BBC.
He told Morning Wire: “Broadcasters like ITV are under competitive disadvantage because the BBC goes head-to-head in competition with them and ITV has to make money commercially.”