Although UK Chancellor Rachel Reeves didn’t mention it in her speech, the UK’s budget document says: “In 2025-26, the settlement provides an increase in funding to the BBC World Service, protecting existing foreign language service provision and its mission to deliver globally trusted media, in support of the UK’s global presence and soft power.”A statement issued by the BBC this afternoon says: “We warmly welcome the announcement of enhanced funding. We are pleased the government has acknowledged the strong case for investing in the World Service. As the world’s most trusted broadcaster, we are in a unique position to lead the global news and information market.“Today’s announcement will enable us to maintain all of our existing language services, to continue fighting disinformation around the world, and also to provide emergency information services to those in crisis, as we have recently done in Gaza, Sudan and Ukraine.“However, despite today’s announcement, the BBC World Service is not immune to the immense pressures facing the rest of the BBC – freezes to the BBC licence fee, materially significant global inflation, and the need to make investments for tech and digital upkeep.“Given this, we will need to work through the details of the funding, and we will say more in due course about any changes and savings we need to make to stay competitive in the face of those continuing pressures.”
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