24-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The National
Scottish Government welcomes BBC update after Traitors row
It comes after a row erupted around The Traitors over the lack of Scottish staff working on the show despite being it filmed in the Highlands.
Earlier this year, Peter Strachan, who sits on the board of trade body Directors UK, accused the BBC of 'depriving' Scots of opportunities as his analysis of the show's off-screen employees claimed the BBC was failing to comply with Ofcom's regulations.
He alleged that 81% of The Traitors season three production team was based in England and that only 7% of off-screen talent was used in series one and 6% in series two.
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Strachan said that just 4% of the 'above the line roles' at Studio Lambert-produced The Traitor's were filled by staff based in Scotland – and by removing a Glasgow-based executive producer it would be 0%.
Regulator Ofcom sets out-of-London criteria for production companies which are supposed to encourage firms to make more programmes, spend more money and employ greater numbers of staff outside of the English capital.
The regulations require producers to meet two of three criteria to qualify as out-of-London. These are having a 'substantive base' in the region, investing 70% of production spend and having at least 50% of the off-screen talent outside London.
On Friday, the BBC published an update where it said it intended to go "well beyond the existing 'qualifying criteria'" and have "at least 70%" of its production budget based locally and/or draw "significantly" on local programme-makers and crew to produce shows.
The corporation's director of nations, Rhodri Talfan Davies, said: "In future, we will not typically commission a new network production regionally unless we are confident it will invest at least 70% of its production budget locally and/or draw significantly on local programme-makers and crew to produce the show.
"We will work closely with our partners in the independent sector to make sure we step through this approach carefully, recognising that some shows have very specific editorial, talent or production requirements.
"We will publish our progress in delivering this commitment each year."
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Talfan Davies added that while results will be published annually, "delivering this change will take a little time", as he said TV commissioning cycles can take as long as three years.
Angus Robertson (Image: Jane Barlow/PA Wire) Culture Secretary Angus Robertson, who previously met with the BBC over concerns around the number of Scottish crew working on the show, welcomed the update.
He said: "Welcome rethink about BBC commissioning after concerns and criticism in Scotland. Change in approach will hopefully influence other public service broadcasters, as well as Ofcom, and help Scottish screen sector grow to £1bn annual industry.
"I look forward to meeting with the BBC to understand how quickly the improvements to commissioning in Scotland will happen. The [Scottish Government is committed to support the Scottish screen sector reach its full potential, with £1bn GVA target by end of 2030/31."
