Rearguard action

The Times' Red Box daily email claims the BBC has quietly dropped planned cuts to its Parliament service, saying the Director General, Lord Hall was not properly informed.

There are plenty of places he might have read about the proposed cuts - closing eight out of 24 journalists jobs, and reducing the channel's output to simple relays of the proceedings. Last year, the budget was just £1.6m.

The NUJ noted that programmes to be cut included.....

The Day in Parliament and the Week in Parliament
Conversations, a series of long-form interviews with senior political figures
BOOKtalk
Speaker’s Lectures
Short films and explainers about parliamentary procedure

Cheeky boy Peter Knowles, Controller BBC Parliament, offered a blog celebrating the channel's current riches only last month.