The BBC’s plan to save an additional £500 million from its total annual operating costs of £5 billion over the next two years will be “devastating” to staff and the organisation itself, warned Bectu, the UK’s media and entertainment union.
The broadcaster is expected to cut up to 2,000 jobs, around 10 per cent of its workforce.
In an email to staff on Wednesday, interim director-general Rhodri Talfan Davies said: “As you know, the BBC is facing significant financial pressures, which we need to respond to with pace.
“Inevitably, these plans will also mean reducing the number of jobs in the BBC. While we still have to work through the detail, we anticipate that the overall number of jobs will fall by 1,800-2,000. I know this creates real uncertainty, but we wanted to be open about the challenge.”
Speaking on BBC Radio 4’s The Media Show, Talfan Davies said more information about the job cuts will be revealed between July and September, when new director-general Matt Brittin will be in place.
Asked if the cuts would impact BBC content, the interim director-general said: “Before cutting content, you think about how to work more smartly. We will look at that across the organisation.”
Philippa Childs, head of Bectu, warned the cuts “will inevitably damage [the BBC’s] ability to deliver on its public mission.
“This will also inevitably impact the wider creative industries ecosystem, given the BBC’s crucial anchor role in commissioning content and nurturing talent. The government must ensure that Charter Renewal puts the BBC’s funding on a more secure, long-term pathway and prevent our national broadcaster facing death by a thousand cuts,” she added.
