Dame Caroline Dinenage criticises the BBC over proposed radio cuts saying it will have ‘significant impact’

Dame Caroline Dinenage, Member of Parliament for Gosport and chair of the Commons’ Culture, Media & Sport Committee, has challenged the Minister for Media, Tourism & Creative Industries regarding cuts to local radio by the BBC.

This comes after the BBC proposed cuts to local radio, which would reduce the number of broadcasts - most noticeably in the evenings and weekends. Dame Caroline believes this may affect the elderly, and vulnerable who are less able to use digital alternatives to receive their local, trusted news sources.

In June, members of the National Union of Journalists (NUJ) staged a walkout after rejecting revised plans on cuts to local radio. It is part of a programme that will see BBC online local news expanded - which has caused anger amongst regional news publishers who say this will pose a threat to their future as they cannot match the BBC’s taxpayer-funded resources. BBC staff also went on strike on Thursday this week, on the by-election day.

The initial announcement came in October last year. The BBC said that “these changes will result in the closure of about 48 staff posts”, with the BBC explaining it wanted to “prioritise digital content”.

Speaking in DCMS Questions, Dame Caroline said: “Local radio is such a lifeline to many of the elderly, vulnerable and isolated people in our communities. I wonder what the Minister’s view is as to what the public service in the BBC’s public service remit actually means.

“Shouldn’t it include reaching everyone with local news and information, and not just those who are digitally enabled?”

The Minister for Media, Tourism & Creative Industries, Sir John Whittingdale said: “Many people still value local radio and will regret and be very concerned about the reduction in output of local radio that the BBC proposed, particularly in evenings and weekends.”