Dear Editor, the political vandal who passes himself off as our Prime Minister and chief entertainer continues to be in the dangerous position of doing untold damage to our public institutions. The latest anti-societal behaviour was geared towards the BBC because of its focused attention on the shenanigans at Number 10.

The two main criticisms levelled at the BBC is that it is not impartial and that in an era of online media, it has gone past its sell by date. In terms of impartiality, it is noticeable that both left and right complain about it. I often worry the BBC spends too much time on personalities rather than facts, but that is the nature of our society. In the real world the BBC continues to be the most trusted brand in news both offline and offline and has an excellent international reputation. This accounts for much of the soft power across the world that is so much admired by government. Looking at the changing characteristics of media, the BBC continues to be the dominant source of both online and offline news in the UK. In terms of innovation, 2019 saw public service broadcasters provided 32,000 hours of UK originated content whilst Netflix and Amazon Prime between them provided just 164 hours.

The BBC offers three essential services: shared reliable news, an institution able to hold the powerful to account, and a provider of cultural assets such as programmes. The BBC provides a set of good programmes which caters to range of tastes and are commercially successful. It is a trusted news source. Yet what irritates the government is that the BBC is in a position to hold the government to account. There is a lot to hold the government to account but these are self-inflicted wounds. The US model so beloved of many is the most divisive and least factually based news services. As the late US senator Moynihan said: “You are entitled to your opinion. But you are not entitled to your own facts.” Recent events suggest that our Prime Minister believes our facts should follow his opinions. That is not good enough for our democracy. Keep your hands off our BBC.

Luigi Gregori, Liberal Democrat Parliamentary Spokesperson for North West Hampshire