The UK government is reportedly set to begin the search for the next chair of media regulator Ofcom with Lord Grade expected to stand down at the end of his term.
According to Sky News, the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT), which now has oversight of Ofcom, is set to begin the process in “the coming months”,
Former BBC, Channel 4 and ITV executive Lord Grade was appointed as Ofcom chair in March 2022 by the then Conservative government.
He is expected to serve his full four-year term before standing down.
The search for the last Ofcom chair took two years, which may explain why the government is keen to begin the process while Grade is still in situ.
The government is also likely to want the chair in place ahead of the renewal of the BBC’s Royal Charter in late 2027.
