Portal:BBC/BBC news archive 2011
The BBC has announced cuts of 2,000 jobs, and the reduction of programming out-put, as part of plans to reduce the corporation's budget by 20% by 2017. The cuts, introduced by the BBC's Director General Mark Thompson, are to compensate for the television license fee, which will not increase for the next few years.
Unions reacted angrily to these changes, with Gerry Morrissey of BECTU claiming the proposals should have been called "destroying quality first", while the National Union of Journalists added "the BBC will not be the same organisation if these cuts go ahead".
In addition to the job cuts, 1,000 more people will move to MediaCityUK in Salford, with BBC Three joining it in 2016. Other proposals include closing BBC HD and replaing it with a simulcast BBC Two HD, cutting the BBC Red Button service after 2012 and reducing the number of broadcasts on Medium wave and Long wave frequencies.
The deepest cuts will come to programming, with more repeats shown; original programming being cut from some radio stations and from the BBC Two daytime schedule, which will show repeats and news only; reduced funding for sports coverage and for programming to be shared between BBC Local Radio regions.
Some money will be invested into programming such as drama, and planned increases to the BBC Children's budget will go ahead, although CBBC and CBeebies programming will be removed from BBC One and Two after the digital switchover is complete.