Bbc News Found Wanting After Devolution

The BBC must improve its coverage of the way Britain's four nations are governed in the wake of devolution, an impartiality report has found.

Research by Cardiff University and market research firm BMRB for the BBC Trust find no concerns exist about BBC News' impartiality, but that the different politics and policies in England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland are not being addressed sufficiently.

But it noted that there were no complaints about a lack of political impartiality, from either politicians or members of the public in all of Britain's four nations.

Research found 37 per cent of people believe the BBC's reports are often irrelevant to whether they live, while 19 per cent said they found reports on devolution to be "vague or confusing".

BBC Trust chairman Sir Michael Lyons said the report showed the BBC was "falling short of its own high standards and is not meeting properly its core purpose of helping to inform democracy".

"The good news is that the public have told us that they want to learn about other parts of the UK," he added, pointing to BMRB research showing 82 per cent of people want to hear news from regions of the UK other than their own.

"This should inspire the BBC to meet this challenge and search for opportunities to make what is happening in different parts of the UK relevant and interesting to all audiences.

"From now on, those watching or listening to BBC News should consistently be able to learn not just what's happening, but whether it's unique to where they live, and how it compares to what might be happening elsewhere in the UK."


11/06/2008 19:28:43

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