Committee rules

There's an increasing rhythm to the BBC's appearances before the Public Accounts Committee of the House of Commons. The National Audit Office publishes a report; the press pick on odds and ends of extravagance; the BBC and Trust declare nothing was wrong, and even if it was, changes have already been implemented; then the whole things start again with the appearance of Execs and Trustees for a public grilling - quite often exacerbated by the MPs delight in the agenda set by the newspapers. Mark D'Arcy thinks that's what'll happen with Monday's discussion on outside broadcasts.

Meanwhile an enquiry under Freedom of Information points, perhaps, to an unusually large number of BBC staff attending conferences run by the NAO.