APPENDIX E Extracts from: An Agreement Between Her Majesty’s Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport and the British Broadcasting Corporation – July 2006 The full text of the Agreement is available at http://www.bbc.co.uk/bbctrust/ A) Sections 5 to 10 – The BBC’s Public Purposes 5. Purpose remits (1) Purpose remits set by the Trust under article 24(2)(a) of the Charter must comply with the requirements of this clause. (2) There shall be a separate purpose remit for each of the six Public Purposes. (3) Each remit must— (a) set out priorities, and (b) specify how the BBC’s performance against them will be judged, in relation to how the BBC promotes its Public Purposes in accordance with article 5 of the Charter (the BBC’s mission to inform, educate and entertain). (4) The Trust must consult publicly in developing purpose remits. (5) Once purpose remits have been adopted, the Trust must keep them under review and may amend them. Before an amendment is made, there must be a process of public consultation appropriate to the nature of the proposed change. For example, any substantial change to the priorities set within a purpose must be subject to a particularly thorough process of full consultation. 6. Sustaining citizenship and civil society (1) In developing (and reviewing) the purpose remit for sustaining citizenship and civil society, the Trust must, amongst other things, seek to ensure that the BBC gives information about, and increases understanding of, the world through accurate and impartial news, other information, and analysis of current events and ideas. (2) In doing so, the Trust must have regard amongst other things to— (a) the need to promote understanding of the UK political system (including Parliament and the devolved structures), including through dedicated coverage of Parliamentary matters, and the need for the purpose remit to require that the BBC transmits an impartial account day by day of the proceedings in both Houses of Parliament; (b) the need to promote media literacy; and (c) the importance of sustaining citizenship through the enrichment of the public realm. 7. Promoting education and learning In developing (and reviewing) the purpose remit for promoting education and learning, the Trust must, amongst other things, seek to ensure that the BBC— (a) stimulates interest in, and knowledge of, a full range of subjects and issues through content that is accessible and can encourage either formal or informal learning; and (b) provides specialist educational content and accompanying material to facilitate learning at all levels and for all ages. 8. Stimulating creativity and cultural excellence (1) In developing (and reviewing) the purpose remit for stimulating creativity and cultural excellence, the Trust must, amongst other things, seek to ensure that the BBC— (a) enriches the cultural life of the UK through creative excellence in distinctive and original content; (b) fosters creativity and nurtures talent; and (c) promotes interest, engagement and participation in cultural activity among new audiences. (2) In doing so, the Trust must have regard amongst other things to— (a) the need for the BBC to have a film strategy; and (b) the need for appropriate coverage of sport, including sport of minority interest. 9. Representing the UK, its nations, regions and communities (1) In developing (and reviewing) the purpose remit for representing the UK, its nations, regions and communities, the Trust must, amongst other things, seek to ensure that the BBC— (a) reflects and strengthens cultural identities through original content at local, regional and national level, on occasion bringing audiences together for shared experiences; and (b) promotes awareness of different cultures and alternative viewpoints, through content that reflects the lives of different people and different communities within the UK. (2) In doing so, the Trust must have regard amongst other things to— (a) the importance of reflecting different religious and other beliefs; and (b) the importance of appropriate provision in minority languages. 10. Bringing the UK to the world and the world to the UK In developing (and reviewing) the purpose remit for bringing the UK to the world and the world to the UK, the Trust must, amongst other things, seek to ensure that the BBC— (a) makes people in the UK aware of international issues and of the different cultures and viewpoints of people living outside the UK through news and current affairs and other outputs such as drama, comedy, documentaries, educational output and sports coverage; and (b) brings high-quality international news coverage to international audiences. B) Section 44 – Regulatory Obligations on the UK Public Services – Accuracy and Impartiality 44. Accuracy and impartiality (1) The BBC must do all it can to ensure that controversial subjects are treated with due accuracy and impartiality in all relevant output. (2) In applying paragraph (1), a series of programmes may be considered as a whole. (3) The UK Public Services must not contain any output which expresses the opinion of the BBC or of its Trust or Executive Board on current affairs or matters of public policy other than broadcasting or the provision of online services. (4) Paragraph (3) does not apply to output which consists of— (a) proceedings in either House of Parliament; (b) proceedings in the Scottish Parliament, the Welsh Assembly or the Northern Ireland Assembly; or (c) proceedings of a local authority or a committee of two or more local authorities. (5) The Trust must— (a) draw up and from time to time review a code giving guidance as to the rules to be observed in connection with the application of paragraphs (1) to (4), and (b) do all it can to secure that the code is complied with. (6) The rules in the code must, in particular, take account of the following matters— (a) that due impartiality should be preserved by the BBC as respects major matters falling within paragraph (b) of the definition of “relevant output” (in paragraph (8)) as well as matters falling within it taken as a whole; and (b) the need to determine what constitutes a series of programmes for the purposes of paragraph (2). (7) The rules must, in addition, indicate to such extent as the Trust considers appropriate— (a) what due impartiality does and does not require, either generally or in relation to particular circumstances; (b) the ways in which due impartiality may be achieved in connection with programmes of particular descriptions; (c) the period within which a programme should be included in a service if its inclusion is intended to secure that due impartiality is achieved for the purposes of paragraph (1) in connection with that programme and any programme previously included in that service taken together; and (d) In relation to any inclusion in a service of a series of programmes which is of a description specified in the rules— (i) that the dates and times of the other programmes comprised in the series should be announced at the time when the first programme so comprised is included in that service, or (ii) if that is not practicable, that advance notice should be given by other means of subsequent programmes so comprised which include material intended to secure, or assist in securing, that due impartiality is achieved in connection with the series as a whole; and the rules must, in particular, indicate that due impartiality does not require absolute neutrality on every issue or detachment from fundamental democratic principles. (8) For the purposes of this clause— “relevant output” means the output of any UK Public Service which— (a) Consists of news, or (b) Deals with matters of public policy or of political or industrial controversy; “programme”, except in paragraph (7)(c) and (d), includes any item of output in nonprogrammer form; and “series of programmes”, except in paragraph (7)(d), includes items of output in nonprogrammer form which are analogously linked.