The BBC is worryingly close to becoming an arm of the Government, says its own former chair

The BBC is moving worrying close towards becoming an “arm of government”, a former chair of the Corporation has said.

Sir Christopher Bland, who chaired the BBC between 1996 and 2001, said the Chancellor’s plan to offload spending priorities onto the broadcaster could have consequences for the broadcaster’s relationship with the state.

“Rather subtly and unattractively it draws the BBC closer to becoming an arm of government which is always something that the BBC and government have resisted,” he told BBC Radio 4’s World this Weekend programme.

“It’s the worst form of dodgy Whitehall accounting. It’s transferring social policy onto the licence fees and it’s shifting from direct taxation where it properly belongs the cost of a Gordon Brown giveaway that was doubtful in the first place anyhow.”

Sir Christopher was commenting on a proposal by George Osborne to make the BBC fund free TV licences, a policy that is usually funded from general taxation.

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