Staff and agencies
Wednesday June 29, 2005
MediaGuardian.co.uk
BBC licence fee payers are to be given the chance to question its governors at the corporation’s annual general meeting, it was announced today.
For the first time, viewers and listeners will be able to put their complaints about programmes directly to those in charge at the meeting, to be held in London on July 19.
The chairman of the governors, Michael Grade, will be there along with senior executive staff including the director general, Mark Thompson.
Licence fee payers will have the opportunity to confront them on the BBC’s performance and use of the licence fee.
A BBC spokeswoman said: “We are expecting people to come along and give the BBC a rigorous question time.”
The meeting will also be streamed live on the BBC website and is the latest in a series of initiatives introduced as part of a programme of making the governance of the corporation more open and transparent.
The BBC admitted last year in its application for charter renewal that it needed a “more open attitude to what others think about us, of our business relationships, our buildings, our impact on the market and our partners”.
Other steps taken have included the new governance unit, to provide independent and objective advice to the board of governors and a new governors’ website.
There will be 200 places at the AGM available for members of the public, who can apply online via the website at: http://www.bbcgovernors.co.uk.
Further events will be held at BBC sites across the UK over the coming months.