BBC World Service to axe 130 jobs as it seeks to save £6 million
BBC World Service to axe 130 jobs as it seeks to save £6 million
Share:
BBC World Service is set to axe 130 jobs as it seeks to save around £6 million for the next financial year. Planned cost-saving measures include closing posts across the service in the UK and internationally as well as cutting roles in BBC Monitoring, a division which reports and analyses news from media around the world.
The corporation has been under financial pressure amid rising inflation and the previous two-year freeze in the licence fee, and has projected its total deficit will increase to £492 million for the 2024/25 financial year. The cuts come after the BBC World Service was given a funding boost as part of the autumn Budget to protect the corporation’s existing foreign language services.
These changes will ensure we operate effectively with the resource we have, creating the most impact for audiences internationally. Chancellor Rachel Reeves announced as part of the Budget in October that the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) settlement for the next financial year “provides an increase in funding to the BBC World Service, protecting existing foreign language service provision and its mission to deliver globally trusted media, in support of the UK’s global presence and soft power”.
The BBC World Service, owned and operated by the corporation, is predominantly funded by the UK licence fee and has received a grant of £104.4 million from the FCDO in previous years. The corporation welcomed the increase in the grant, but said “previous freezes on the licence fee, global inflation, and the need for ongoing digital and technological upkeep have meant savings are necessary”.
