Local MP Condemns BBC Decision to Cancel Local TV News in Parliament Debate

Rob Butler, MP for Aylesbury, condemned the BBC’s decision to end its local TV news bulletins for Buckinghamshire in a debate in the House of Commons today.

The debate, led by Rob, was held in response to the BBC’s announcement that it will be closing the Oxford edition of its regional TV news programme South Today and merging it with the programme from Southampton.

Rob slammed the BBC’s decision, arguing that it does not comply with the requirements set out in the BBC Charter, which says that all audiences should be able to “engage fully with major local issues.”

Rob said:

“The BBC’s plans to cut dedicated television news programmes for our area will reduce access to local news and information for many people. That contravenes the BBC’s Charter requirements – which are in place to justify the licence fee paid by everyone who owns a TV.

“The BBC’s own figures say that 75% of the viewers to its South Today programme are older than 55. What’s worse, the BBC has admitted that this isn’t being done to save money because funding for regional programmes is being maintained. This means local people will lose access to local TV services for no reason other than the whims of BBC bosses.

“The current proposals to subsume the news from Aylesbury into a programme broadcast from Southampton are simply wrong. Stories about sailing and the coast are not relevant to one of the most inland towns in England. And news about the chaos of HS2 in Buckinghamshire isn’t very high on the agenda for people in Bembridge on the Isle of Wight. The result will be even lower audiences as people tune out from a programme with stories that they simply don’t relate to.

“When I asked the BBC for evidence that these viewers wanted to get their news online rather than on TV, they simply couldn’t provide it.

“The BBC must reconsider its decision now, and spare our local TV news programme from the axe.”