The BBC has announced plans to cut up to 2,000 jobs in a bid to cut about 10% of its annual budget, which amounts to £500 million (about $677 million) over the next two years.
The decision, which was shared during a staff call, represents the largest round of layoffs in more than a decade.
“I know this creates real uncertainty, but we wanted to be open to the challenge,” Interim CEO Rhodri Talfan Davies was quoted as saying in an email Wednesday.
Davies said the cuts were driven by rising inflation, financial pressure on royalties, falling commercial revenues and continued global economic uncertainty.
“As you know, the BBC is facing significant financial pressures to which we need to respond quickly. Put simply, the gap between our costs and our income is widening. This is due to a number of factors: production inflation remains very high; our license fees and commercial income are under pressure; and the global economy remains turbulent,” he said.
The BBC earlier this year warned of “substantial financial pressures” and outlined a wider plan to cut its budget by around 10% by 2029, with most of the cost-cutting expected to take place in the financial year starting 1 April 2027.
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According to the BBC, Davies told BBC Radio 4’s Media Show that the organization needed to carefully assess all options, noting that the £500m target would inevitably involve “some big and some difficult choices” that needed to be approached cautiously.
He said: “For viewers, the challenge now is to work over the next three or four months on how we make these changes without damaging the services we know are critical for the BBC across radio, TV and online.”
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The cuts come as former Google executive Matt Brittin prepares to take over the role of CEO next month.
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He will take over following the resignations of Tim Davie and news chief Deborah Turnes, who stepped down following a controversy over misleading editing of a document related to US President Donald Trump’s January 6, 2021 speech before his supporters stormed the US Capitol.
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Widely regarded as an iconic and often debated cultural institution, the BBC is funded through an annual license fee. The fee, which was recently increased to £180 (about $244), is paid by all UK households who watch live TV or access BBC content.
Critics of license fees, including competing commercial broadcasters, have become increasingly vocal in the age of digital streaming, as many viewers no longer own television sets or tune in to traditional broadcast programming.
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The centre-left Labor government has pledged to maintain “sustainable and fair” funding for the BBC, although it has not ruled out replacing license fees with an alternative funding model.
About the BBC
The BBC was founded in 1922 as a radio station to “inform, educate and entertain”.
Today it operates 15 national and regional UK television channels, several international channels, 10 national radio stations and a number of local radio services. It also operates the BBC World Service and a wide range of digital platforms, including the BBC iPlayer streaming service.
(With agency input)
