Today's publication of a report on the 'Future of the BBC' by the House of Commons Culture, Media and Sport Committee marks a major step in the process of renewing the BBC Charter. A formal review will not be officially triggered until after the election - despite the Charter only having 18 months life ahead of it at that point - but the key issues are already clearly defined.
One of the Committee’s recommendations is that, should it be determined that a properly conducted review requires more than 12 months (leaving the BBC and ministers too little time to implement any major proposals before the current Charter’s expiry), there could be a short-term extension of the ten-year Charter period, by up to two years. That seems sensible.
