MPs have questioned the independence of charity BBC Media Action, suggesting its funding from the European Union to promote its political strategy will damage impartial reporting on the EU by the BBC, where the charity is based.
The Daily Telegraph reported that BBC Media Action, a charity based at the BBC’s Broadcasting House in London, was paid £4.5m from Brussels last year. The majority of this was for work designed to ensure the progress of the enlargement of the EU.
Angie Bray (pictured), Conservative MP for Ealing Central and Acton, is a member of the Commons Media Select Committee. She told The Telegraph that she feared Brussels may be attempting to use the BBC to “further the empire-building ambitions of the EU”.
She said: “On past form, many licence fee-payers will be concerned that this is another example of the BBC finding ways of promoting its pro-EU agenda.”
“We all know that the EU doesn’t spend funds on projects that are not all about promoting the EU. Clearly investing that kind of money in this BBC charitable project suggests that they are expecting a big result from this.”
Last week, chairman of the Conservative Party, Grant Schapps, warned that the BBC could lose its right to the licence fee if does not tackle a “culture” of secrecy, waste and unbalanced reporting.
BBC Media Action is the BBC’s international development charity and is regarded by the BBC as being part of its global news division. However it is legally a separate entity from the BBC.
The charity is chaired by the BBC’s director of global news, Peter Horrocks, and George Alagiah, presenter of BBC News at Six, has been on the board of trustees since 2010.
However the BBC has dismissed Bray's claims, describing them as “completely unfounded and confused”.
A spokesperson went on to say: “BBC Media Action is an independent charity which works to support free and fair journalism and reduce poverty around the world; its work has absolutely no bearing on the BBC’s editorial decisions.
“The BBC’s editorial remit is to deliver fair, balanced and impartial coverage and we are satisfied that our coverage of the European Union does just that.”
Figures disclosed by the European Union’s Financial Transparency system showed that the charity received £4.5m from the EU in 2012.
Of this, £3.8m was allocated as part of the EU’s European Neighbourhood Policy. This aims to “create an area of shared values, stability and prosperity, enhanced cooperation and deeper and economic regional integration”.
BBC Media Action applied for an open competitive tender advertised by the European Union in 2011 in order to provide support to journalism in Eastern Europe and the Middle East.
The BBC has said that the project does not promote the EU or the EU agenda and is not about producing broadcast output.
As part of the project BBC Media Action is training 1,200 journalists, 500 students and 50 mentors in 15 countries.
