Speaking in response to the news that Labour leadership candidate David Miliband and former culture secretary Tessa Jowell are calling for the BBC to be transformed into a co-operative, Ed Mayo, Secretary General of Cooperatives UK, said:
“It is brilliant to see such senior Labour voices raise the stakes in terms of the potential for co-operative action. This proposal does address the current weakness of BBC governance, which leaves the BBC open to the unedifying spectacle of growing bullying over recent years by government. If the BBC were answerable to members and license payers in a democratic way, its independence would be strong.
“Making this happen could only take time, because co-operative membership is built from the bottom up, not the top down, and should be voluntary not compulsory, but it would be inspiring to see the public trust and sense of ownership of the BBC turned into a genuine engagement and co-operative ownership stake.”
