THE prospect of a BBC Scottish Six television news programme has been backed by a report on the future of public service broadcasting in the UK.
Labour peer Lord David Puttnam, chairing the Future for Public Service Television Inquiry, also called for more devolution in BBC budgets.
He said the current provision for Scottish audiences fell short and that BBC Scotland’s news output should reflect the world to Scots “as seen from Scotland”.
“There’s no question that the world as viewed from Edinburgh and Glasgow is a different world as viewed from London.
“Those editorial decisions ought to be located in Scotland because they affect Scotland,” he added.
In February, BBC Scotland announced a trial of an hour-long news programme to replace the Six O’Clock News and Reporting Scotland but the corporation has yet to make a final decision on the issue.
Puttnam said: “We looked carefully at it and we don’t think the present system has fully taken on board the settlement that exists – that basically it’s not reflective of the current constitutional settlement with Scotland.
“And it certainly won’t be reflective of the settlement, if – as seems absolutely possible – Scotland increases its relationship with
Europe or solidifies its relationship with Europe in a post-Brexit world.”
Since the explosive EU referendum vote, Puttnam has spoken out against Brexit saying it has left him feeling “deeply, deeply ashamed” about his country.
“I feel that all of its worst elements have combined to create a result which I consider to be a catastrophe for my grandchildren,” he said.
The Leave campaign was “disgraceful”, exploiting huge ignorance about the EU, he added.
“We have allowed a kind of Monty Python parody of Europe to become commonplace, and we’ve entirely failed to correct it.”
On the BBC, Puttnam said it was time for control of funding for Scottish programming to move to Scotland.
He said: “One thing I discovered as a movie producer is that unless you control your own budget, you will never make your own programmes.
“You cannot continue to go cap in hand from Scotland to London, or from Manchester to London for that matter, and hope the budget controllers will give you the type of freedom and be able to make the type of programme that you want to make.”
The report, commissioned in November last year, also called for the licence fee to be replaced by a more “progressive option”, including the possibility of a supplement to the council tax.
BBC director general Tony Hall, who spoke to the Culture Media and Sport Committee at Westminster on Tuesday, said a new Scottish Six would have to be better than what Scots are getting at the moment.
Speaking about a possible Scottish Six, he told the committee: “The current method of delivering news between 6-7pm is very popular, it’s very popular with audiences in
Scotland, the teams do a very good job. So whatever changes we make must be in the knowledge that actually it’s got to be as good as – if not better than – what we are doing at the moment.”
Hall said the BBC was “taking its time” developing the programme and would only launch it when it is “right”.
Last week, BBC Scotland announced an overhaul of its controversial coverage of news and current affairs in a step towards a Scottish Six. Flagship current affairs show Scotland 2016 is being scrapped after less than three years on air, along with Radio Scotland’s The Big Debate with Gordon Brewer and Douglas Fraser’s Business Scotland weekend slots.
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