It looks like Nadine Dorries' team has been briefing the Sunday papers. Tim Shipman in the Sunday Times says "Dorries, one of Johnson’s closest cabinet allies, has told the prime minister he should throw red meat to his backbenchers." Her prime cut, says Mr Shipman, is a two-year freeze on the BBC licence fee.
The Times finds a BBC source: "There are very good reasons for investing in what the BBC can do for the British public and the creative industries, and the [profile of the] UK around the world. Anything less than inflation would put unacceptable pressure on the BBC finances after years of cuts."
Both sides will be rehearsing their lines for an announcement this coming week. The Government will seek to frame it as part of a package to help balance other cost-of-living rises, which might or might not be the Government's fault. They will not entertain the suggestion that a freeze is also 'red meat' to a certain group of Tory backbenchers and their favoured papers, who will claim it is a sign that ‘the days of state-run television are over’.
Equally, when in receipt of this typically-nasty kick in the chops, the BBC cannot use the word 'unacceptable'. It'll have to be 'strong disappointment that we didn't successfully make our case....'
No comments:
Post a Comment