Strike over job cuts plan forces BBC to change programming

THE BBC ditched some of its flagship news programmes yesterday as it was forced to drastically change its schedules because of the biggest strike against the corporation in over a decade in a bitter row over jobs.

Unions said last night that 15,000 journalists and technicians had joined the 24-hour walkout from BBC studios across Britain and were prepared to strike again for 48 hours from next Tuesday.

The BBC said 62% of its staff had worked, although the figure was as low as 29% among news employees.

Top presenters including Dermot Murnaghan and Natasha Kaplinsky from BBC One, John Humphrys from Radio 4, Jeremy Paxman from BBC Two's Newsnight and Nicky Campbell from Radio 5 Live stayed away from work.

A number of stars did cross picket lines in London, including Radio 1 DJs Chris Moyles and Jo Whiley and Radio 2's Sarah Kennedy.

Radio 2 presenter Terry Wogan wished people on the picket line "good luck" as he went inside Broadcasting House in central London.

Strikers held up banners which read: "Here is the news journalists are on strike" as they tried to persuade office staff, delivery workers and postmen not to cross the picket line.

The first high-profile casualty of the stoppage was Radio 4's Today, which was replaced by previously transmitted programmes.

Union leaders said support for the strike had been "rock solid" and called on BBC director general Mark Thompson to reopen talks over controversial plans to axe 4,000 jobs.

Gerry Morrissey, assistant general secretary of BECTU, said: "This should send a clear message to Mark Thompson to return to the bargaining table for meaningful negotiations."

Jeremy Dear, general secretary of the National Union of Journalists said it was the biggest strike against the BBC in living memory.

"We have seen a massive display of anger across the BBC at the scale of the impact of these cuts.

"We have made it clear we will not accept cuts which decimate programmes, devalue the BBC, short-change licence fee payers, increase pressures on staff and worsen working conditions."

Caroline Thomson, the BBC's Director of Strategy and Policy, said: "We are pleased that we have managed to keep a core news service going although obviously we regret the fact that there has been a strike."