The BBC is ordered to work more closely with publishers

RISK THAT CORPORATION COULD BECOME ONLY SOURCE OF LOCAL NEWS IN COMMUNITIES

THE BBC has been ordered to work more closely with publishers amid growing concerns about the threat it poses to the future of independent local news.

Industry regulator Ofcom will also be told to produce an annual report looking at the impact the Corporation is having on local news in the UK.

The instructions are contained in the government's mid-term review of the BBC's Charter, its contract with government which is underpinned by the licence fee, paid by every household in the UK.

The mid-term review also gives media regulator Ofcom greater powers to scrutinise the BBC's online services, which have attracted strong criticism from publishers after the BBC began dismantling its local radio services so it could boost its local news online, directly competing with existing local news websites such as www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk.

Across the UK, the BBC has scrapped dedicated local programming on local radio stations after 2pm on weekdays and throughout most of the weekend, instead hiring more local journalists to write stories for the BBC News website, often writing articles already being produced by existing local publishers.