What Must Be Done Must Be Done: How To Abolish The BBC

Our objective is the abolition of the BBC.

To achieve our objective, it is likely we will have to persuade a major political party to adopt the abolition of the BBC as policy.

The BBC can be abolished.  Here we set out the relevant steps.  In fact, the legal process is fairly straightforward, but the government that carries out the following must be made up of strong-willed and strong-minded politicians who will need to stand firm in the face of immense pressure and opprobrium from across the political spectrum, not just from the Left but also from the putative political Right as well - much of it of the type we have seen from Remainers during and after the Brexit referendum.

The political reaction

As soon as abolition of the BBC becomes a realistic prospect, the defenders and apologists of the BBC, not to mention staff at the BBC itself, will scream, shriek and issue slander.  They will be rage-filled and psychotic because they know very well what abolition of the BBC signifies.  It is, truly, a revolutionary act.  But even many conservative-minded people will oppose the abolition of the BBC - for sentimental reasons. 

There will be appeals to patriotism from the sworn enemies of this country.  There will be appeals to tradition from people who sneer at tradition.  The Left and the unions will oppose abolition for obvious reasons and will push all the emotional buttons of their supporters.  What about the poor BBC staff?  We’re living in a fascist police state!  Look at this nice cuddly dog.  Etc., etc., and so on and so on. 

The hardest part will be facing down certain parts of the business community, whose self-appointed representatives will claim that the BBC can’t be abolished because that will harm the economy.  These people must be faced-down and told: NO!

The BBC themselves will pledge that they can change and are willing to reform.  The more savvy and sophisticated elements of both camps, the Left and the Right, will also try to push the case for reform and may unite and work together to lobby for this, using especially their contacts in the Senior Civil Service in an effort to frustrate and stymie political initiative.  Again, study anti-Brexit shenanigans for clues.  Some of these reformists’ efforts will be quite clever and subtle, and there will be people who were in the ‘abolition’ camp who will suddenly start talking about the need for slow and gradual reform instead and how abolishing the BBC would be ‘stupid’ or ‘too radical’: that’s the Fifth Column tendency, and for an analogous example of the type, look at the Flexciters and soft Brexiters who have worked cleverly to undermine Brexit. 

We will be condescended-to, ridiculed and slandered

Some of the more obvious tricks will be deployed too: those of us who insist on abolition will be portrayed as thick, ignorant white working class men, etc., etc. – the usual.  We will be assured that the metropolitan sophisticates with degrees and posh accents are really working in the interests of the country and are the only people who can run things and deal with these ‘terribly complicated’ problems, and we should hand the responsibility over to them.  You know the script. 

Our resolve must be iron

These deceptive and dishonest pleas must be coldly ignored.  Our resolve must be iron.  For the good of Britain and the British people, the BBC must be destroyed.

We are all sentimentally-attached to the BBC – this is difficult for all of us – but you don’t keep a leg inflicted with gangrene, you cut it off.  What must be done must be done.  That is that.

How To Abolish The BBC: step-by-step

1. The Royal Charter can technically be revoked by a government minister under Crown prerogative, but parliamentary pre-approval will be advisable in order to pre-empt any basis for a legal challenge.

2. Once the Charter has been formally revoked, the BBC should be taken off the air immediately and all staff should be ordered off BBC premises.  That means all television and radio broadcasts cease at a pre-determined time.  There may be resistance from some of the more militant BBC staff for political reasons: if necessary, the Army should be deployed to force shutdown of all stations and to remove staff from BBC property.

3. An Act of Parliament will then be needed to dissolve the statutory Corporation and appoint private sector receivers to break-up the Corporation and, variously, sell and lease its assets on the commercial market. 

4. Receivers should also ensure that any contractual salary and pension obligations to BBC staff are honoured, including any statutory redundancy rights arising, and this should be underpinned by the state - but only to the extent required under general law and contract.