Channel 4 bosses hit out over privatisation rumours uncertainty

Channel 4 has unveiled a year of record revenues and a financial surplus of £26m, with a marked growth of 30% in digital revenues.

But it is under pressure from the UK government, which is considering options from full or part-privatisation to the sale of a minority stake, the payment of a dividend and the relocation to Birmingham or Manchester for the publicly-funded broadcaster.

Channel 4 chairman Charles Gurassa said the uncertainty around the Government's position was "not helpful".

He said: It's not for me to comment on the ultimate workings of government, but from a Channel 4 perspective what is not helpful is prolonged uncertainty.

"This review was first publicly discussed in the autumn, we are now in mid-May, and prolonged uncertainty is not good for any organisation.

"It's not good for our staff, it's not good for our business partners, it's not good for our advertisers, because they are all asking ... what is going to happen and what will the implications be?"

In a message to the UK government, he said: "You have the information, we will happily engage on any options that you consider and give you our views, but it would be good to get to a position where we can move on and be clear whether there are going to be changes and what they are going to be."