Amend BBC's Royal charter to bar and remove political advisers from BBC Board

100
signatures
closedDepartment for Culture, Media and SportOpened 8 January 2026Closed 8 July 2026

Background

Amend the BBC's Royal Charter to: a) bar anyone from the BBC Board who has held senior advisory roles in government or political party leadership in the past 10 years; and b) adjust legal thresholds to enable the removal of current board members with such affiliations.

Additional details

The BBC Charter requires impartiality, yet we feel board members with recent political ties compromise this principle. We think public confidence in the BBC’s independence is undermined when governance includes former government advisers or party strategists. We believe reforming the appointment process and removing partisan members will help to protect editorial neutrality and uphold democratic standards. We believe this would restore impartiality and public trust.

Where it’s popular

Constituencies with the most signatures on this petition.

Source: UK Government & Parliament Petitions service. Petition ID: 750310.