MPs fear loss of BBC World Service influence amid ‘hostile’ propaganda push
Committee calls for action on funding and protection for journalists as fears grow that viewer trust is being lost to Russia and China.
Funding cuts and weak governance threaten to undermine the global reach of the BBC World Service and the UK’s soft power overseas, with a risk of enabling propaganda from hostile states, MPs have warned.
An inquiry concluded that the service, which is funded jointly by the BBC licence fee and the Foreign Office, is at risk of losing its position as the most-trusted international broadcaster because it is unable to present a strong case for investment.
While the service provided in 43 languages across the world has an average weekly audience of 313 million, the PAC said there is a serious risk of it losing ground to its rivals, in part because of increased spending on international media by states such as Russia and China.
The two countries invested a combined total of about £6 billion to £8 billion a year in global media operations, at a time when the World Service has experienced spending cuts.
The committee also highlighted that trust scores have also “increased markedly” for Russian and Chinese state broadcasters in recent years, while the BBC’s ratings have remained stable.
The World Service’s total budget fell by 21% in real terms between 2021 and 2026, mainly driven by reductions in contributions from the licence fee.
The PAC said it was “deeply troubled” to learn that the BBC has not been told how much the Government will provide in funding for the World Service in the coming year.
Meanwhile, the BBC could not provide the committee with “a single, transparent suite of value for money measures across the service’s TV, radio and digital offerings”.
The report added weaknesses in BBC governance had “led to poorly evidenced decisions and unclear lines of responsibility within the organisation”.
The corporation’s management of the World Service’s digital upgrade was found to have had weaknesses that contributed to a fall in overall digital audiences of 11% since 2021.
The PAC also raised concerns about the BBC’s failure to “clearly document its rationale for key decisions made as part of savings programmes”, alongside a lack of metrics to effectively track performance and impact on its audiences.
The BBC announced plans to establish a new international governance model in February 2025, but only one of six regional directors were permanently in post by January this year.
The PAC also concluded the Government must work to improve conditions for World Service journalists working in dangerous environments, including where staff and their families are at risk of imprisonment.
PAC chairman Sir Geoffrey Clifton-Brown described the World Service’s productions and educational content as “amazing and a jewel in the crown of the UK’s soft power effort around the world”.
But he warned its prominence is “being diminished by poor governance and short-sighted funding decisions”.
Sir Geoffrey added: “My committee is urging the Government and the BBC to set out a clear direction of travel for the World Service to ensure that its audience is not left behind.
“The Government must be clear-eyed about the realities of a diminishing audience for the BBC World Service.
“As it cuts back, it risks opening the door to propaganda from hostile states such as Russia filling the void it leaves behind, who are spending billions of pounds in this field.
“At a time of heightened geopolitical tensions and declining media freedom the UK cannot afford to lose such a crucial soft power instrument.”
Sir Geoffrey said the Government and the BBC should examine how the influence of the World Service can be bolstered, “rather than risk its reach withering by degrees year on year”.
“And importantly, journalists working in increasingly dangerous environments deserve more than just our praise, the UK Government must do all it can to improve the conditions they are working in and to protect and restore media freedoms globally,” he added.
The Government has been approached for comment.
A BBC spokesperson said: “We welcome the PAC’s report which recognises the importance of the BBC World Service as the most trusted international news provider globally, and the need for secure, long-term funding. This is why we are calling for the Government to take back full funding of the World Service as part of the BBC Charter Review.
“We are making changes to strengthen how we demonstrate value for money and to improve governance and documentation.
“We thank the committee for their praise of our staff working in difficult and dangerous conditions and will respond to them more fully in line with their recommendations.”
