Latest news with #ReformVoters
Telegraph
3 days ago
- Politics
- Telegraph
BBC bosses in talks about how to win over Reform-voting viewers
BBC bosses are holding talks about how to win over Reform-voting viewers amid fears their views are under-represented by the broadcaster. Senior executives including director-general Tim Davie and chairman Samir Shah have discussed plans to overhaul the BBC's news and drama output to tackle 'low-trust issues' among Reform voters. At a meeting of the corporation's editorial guidelines and standards committee in March, Deborah Turness, BBC News boss, gave a presentation on how to ensure the views of Reform voters were being given enough airtime. Changes under consideration included altering which news stories the broadcaster covers, as well as potential changes to how it commissions other forms of programming including drama. The committee, which counts former GB News adviser Sir Robbie Gibb as a member, also discussed the importance of local BBC teams. The BBC is understood to be keen to ensure it represents all audiences and their concerns, suggesting the broadcaster may look to boost its coverage of issues such as immigration. Insiders said there was also a focus on making sure that all viewers, experiences and backgrounds are portrayed on screen in entertainment shows. The committee is expected to update on its progress in luring Reform voters at a future meeting. Minutes from the meeting, first reported by Byline Times, stated: 'The CEO, News and Current Affairs provided the Committee with a presentation on plans to address low-trust issues with Reform voters. 'The Committee discussed the presentation. Committee members recognised the importance of local BBC teams in the plan, given their closeness to audiences. 'Directors discussed how story selection and other types of output, such as drama, also had a role to play.' It comes amid concerns that an increasing number of Reform-voting viewers are switching off from the BBC. A recent YouGov poll found that Reform voters have significantly less trust in institutions than supporters of other parties. Question Time's most-used guest Just 13pc of Reform voters said they had a great deal or a fair amount of trust in the BBC, well below the average of 42pc. In contrast, 55pc of Reform supporters said they trusted GB News, which counts Nigel Farage as a presenter. Mr Farage has repeatedly attacked the BBC, describing it as 'institutionally biased' and 'out-of-touch'. In a manifesto last year, he vowed to scrap the licence fee should his party be elected. Despite this, he has been a regular contributor to the broadcaster. The Reform leader made his 38th appearance on Question Time at the end of last year, making him the show's most regular living guest. Only Charles Kennedy, the former Lib Dem leader, appeared on the programme more times. The shake-up comes at a turbulent time for Reform, which has seen its popularity surge in recent months and is now ahead of both the Labour and Conservative parties in polling. Over the weekend, Zia Yusuf announced he was returning as party chairman just two days after he quit in spectacular fashion. He insisted his decision to step down had been 'born of exhaustion'. The BBC has previously sought the view of audiences on what it should be covering. During last year's election it launched a feedback campaign dubbed 'Your Voice, Your Vote', which led to it covering stories such as electricity pylons and rural bus services. The discussions come as BBC bosses are locked in negotiations with ministers over the future of the licence fee funding model, which is up for debate ahead of the end of the current Charter period in 2027. A BBC spokesman said: 'Our Royal Charter requires us to reflect and represent all the communities of the UK, and our Editorial Guidelines require that we must take account of the different political parties with electoral support across the UK to achieve due impartiality.'
The Guardian
09-05-2025
- Politics
- The Guardian
Labour is about to get even tougher on asylum seekers. It still won't work
Deep disillusionment is now driving the public mood in Britain. People are desperate for competent government to handle issues like the cost of living, welfare and immigration. And they want people to be treated fairly and with dignity, whether they are asylum seekers, disabled people or pensioners. Yet on immigration, it is clear that No 10 has missed the memo. It remains convinced that the only way to get a hearing with Reform voters on asylum is to sound as tough as possible. Indeed, Labour has recently resorted to sharing footage of people being deported in handcuffs, and headline grabbing initiatives to ship asylum seekers whose claims fail to so-called return hubs in countries such as Albania. But this approach is simply wrong. It will not work. The only way to get a hearing with Reform voters on asylum is to deliver results. An immigration white paper expected on Monday will signal a further hardening of policy towards those seeking asylum. Already trailed is a planned crackdown on international students applying for asylum and higher English-speaking requirements for migrants and refugees settling here. What do all these policies have in common? They are kneejerk initiatives that will make no difference to whether or not people come to the UK seeking sanctuary. We know from our work at the Refugee Council that asylum seekers don't make decisions based on the latest government announcement or new laws. They come because of family and community connections, as well as historic links with Britain and its mother tongue. What's more, these plans won't make any material difference to the lives of people voting for Reform. For the average voter, they are meaningless. What concerns them are boats coming across the Channel and asylum hotels that they see in their local areas. They've heard the government's promise to close the hotels, but they've seen no progress. Delivering on this is where the government has a chance to rebuild trust. It must consider systemic solutions. The asylum housing challenge cannot be separated from the wider temporary housing challenge that has led to a number of councils teetering on the edge of the financial precipice. It needs rapid, whole-system reform. A Treasury review of procuring short-term residential accommodation could potentially identify a financing solution so that councils could procure the housing that is needed – not just for refugees and people seeking asylum, but for families facing homelessness. This would be bold, impactful policymaking that voters would actually be able to see for themselves. On the Channel boat crossings, too, the government could bring back trust by restoring a greater sense of order. 'Smashing the gangs' involved in people-smuggling won't work on its own. Instead, a multipronged approach is needed that includes cooperating more deeply with France and other European countries, as well as undermining the business model of the gangs by creating safe and legal options for refugees to apply for asylum in Britain. This combination of approaches – enforcement, cross-border cooperation and legal routes – worked in the US, as shown by the big decline in the number of irregular arrivals at the US-Mexico border in the final year of the Biden administration. Sensible, evidence-based policies like these are not only necessary to restore trust with disillusioned voters: they reflect the views of the average voter. An analysis by the opinion researcher Steve Akehurst shows 'boring moderation is the order of the day' when it comes to immigration and asylum, as it doesn't alienate either side of the voter coalition that was so vital to Labour's general election victory. Not only will tough-sounding policies, headlines and slogans erode public trust when they fail to produce results, they will also have the effect of dangerously ramping up the temperature on the asylum debate. Less than a year since towns up and down the country were shocked by violence on the streets targeting refugees, we need responsible and sensible leadership, not the populist playbook. On Thursday, our political leaders marked VE Day. It was out of the horrors of the second world war that Britain built its asylum system, offering safety to people who had experienced the very worst suffering, regardless of how they reached our shores. Today, more than two-thirds of Britons are proud of the country's role in taking in refugees since that war. That includes a majority of Reform voters. Britons have not lurched to the right on immigration. Britons are not anti-refugee. The public just wants to see a system that is fair, controlled and treats people with the dignity they deserve. Above all else, they are fed up with politicians overpromising and underdelivering. It's time for some principled competence and far less populist performance. Enver Solomon is chief executive of the Refugee Council
