BORIS Johnson is expected to announce the appointment of former Daily Mail editor Paul Dacre as chair of broadcasting watchdog Ofcom.
Dacre, who stepped down from the helm of the Mail in 2018, is said to be the Prime Minister’s preferred candidate for the job.
During his editorship of the Daily Mail, the 72-year-old was highly critical of the BBC – which he would regulate if he got the role.
Dacre is still editor in chief of Daily Mail Group and publisher of the the Mail on Sunday, the Metro and the MailOnline website. Ofcom staff are expected to adopt political neutrality.
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A date has not yet been set but Whitehall and media sources report Johnson is hoping to announce the appointment soon, despite reports there is some resistance to the move within the Tories. It is believed the remit of the role will be to target the BBC and the PM will later reward Dacre with a peerage.
A leading figure in British TV management told The Guardian appointing Dacre is "an appalling idea".
They added: “A key role for Ofcom in the coming months will be focusing on improving the nation’s broadband, which is vital not just for business but for social inclusion. Dacre knows nothing about any of that.”
Associates report that Dacre maintains his long-held dislike of the big internet platforms. Organisations such as Google and Facebook have effectively destroyed the advertising market that supports his newspapers.
Johnson's plans to seriously reform the BBC were interrupted by the Covid crisis but he has set up a government panel to consider the future role of public service broadcasting. The broadcaster currently faces scrutiny over equal pay, diversity, free TV licences for the over-75s and competition from streaming services such as Netflix, as well as the pandemic.
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Suspicions about Dacre's new role were first reported in September last year when economist Lord Terence Burns announced he was stepping down. The Sunday Times reported that Dacre was "wooed" by Johnson over drinks in Downing Street in February last year.
Burns is believed to have clashed with the Prime Minister over the appointment of a new Ofcom chief executive. Eventually he agreed to leave in order to get his own choice of Melanie Dawes.
Dawes stepped across from her high-ranking civil service job in February last year. Announcing the move, Dawes, who is married to Benedict Brogan, political editor of the Daily Mail under Dacre, spoke of “a big agenda ahead”.
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In September, Ian Blackford, the SNP's Westminster leader, said the report was yet another reason to back independence.
He tweeted: "There is a very obvious question to the people of Scotland do you want this right wing bunch under the patronage of @BorisJohnson dominating our institutions or do you want to find your own way to a civilised alternative? #itstimeforindy"
Labour's shadow culture secretary Jo Stevens added: "Throughout this crisis, one of Boris Johnson's overriding priorities has been handing out cushy jobs, public contracts and taxpayers' cash without proper scrutiny.
"People are worried about their jobs and health. The Prime Minister should be showing the leadership our country needs, not seeking undue influence over our independent institutions."
Earlier this month, it was reported that former Goldman Sachs banker Richard Sharp will succeed Sir David Clementi as BBC chairman.
His appointment comes amid a debate about the BBC licence fee and how the broadcaster is facing competition from streaming services.
Sharp, who was once Chancellor Rishi Sunak’s boss, will take over from Sir David, who will stand down in February, according to BBC media editor Amol Rajan.
Names previously linked with the post include former chancellor George Osborne and former editor of the Daily Telegraph Charles Moore, who reportedly ruled himself out.
The new chairman will work closely with new director-general Tim Davie, who is the former chief executive of the BBC’s commercial arm, BBC Studios.
He took over from Lord Tony Hall in September and said the corporation needs to keep reforming “with urgency” and stressed it must be “a universal public service”.
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