MPs urge BBC governance shake-up

A parliamentary committee has urged a shake-up in corporate governance at the BBC and called for outside regulation of the broadcaster's commercial activities.
The BBC's board of governors should be replaced with a board of non-executive directors, often meeting in public, with greater independence from executives of the public-funded broadcaster, according to the Commons select committee on culture, media and sport.
MPs also called for Of com, the media and communications regulator, to assume powers over BBC commercial businesses such as Worldwide, the corporation's overseas channels, publishing and international programmes business.
The committee stopped short of demanding a change in licence fee funding or redistributing BBC funds to
other public service broadcasters.
Sir Gerald Kaufman, committee chairman, said: "Our recommendations are aimed at assisting the development of proposals that will take a strong and independent BBC, but also an accountable, open and efficient BBC, into what is an uncertain future for broadcasting."
The BBC gave a guarded welcome to the report, which could influence the government's planned consultative document on the broadcaster's next 10-year royal charter.
The government is considering the BBC's future remit and funding formula as part of its review of the broadcaster's charter, which expires in 2006.
BBC officials said they would also study the detailed recommendations on corporate governance, funding, public service remit and accountability.
Privately, however, BBC insiders insisted that Michael Grade, the corporation's new chairman, was already overhauling the board of governors and introducing more transparency.
The BBC last week also unveiled a big restructuring plan involving almost 3,000
job losses aimed at saving £320m a year.
Among 38 recommendations, the parliamentary committee applauded the restructuring but said the move was overdue. It also called for a "project board" to be created to compare BBC practices with those elsewhere in the industry.
MPs also urged reforms of the BBC's constitution - recommending a statutory act of parliament to cover the broadcaster - as well as moves to decriminalise licence fee evasion, and increased quotas for independent production.
Rival broadcasters said the recommendations were a step in the right direction, particularly on corporate governance and programme production quotas. Pact, the trade association representing independent producers, also endorsed calls for more commissioning from outside companies.