The Culture, Media and Sport Committee has launched an inquiry into the BBC Royal Charter Review.

The inquiry follows the close of the Government’s consultation on the Charter Review and the BBC’s publication of its own submission, which sets out proposals for the future and acknowledges that “the current funding model cannot maintain the BBC’s public service mission for the future”.

The Government’s Green Paper identified a number of options that are being considered to ensure that the BBC is sustainably funded, including ways to support it in generating more commercial revenue and reforms to the licence fee. In its submission, the BBC welcomed discussion about how to reform its funding, and did not signal a preference for any model, but made clear that “a universal service requires a universal funding model”.

The inquiry invites submissions on questions of funding and the licence fee, but also covers a wide range of other subjects such as the purpose and activities of the BBC, how it can be made more valued, trusted, and accountable, and how it can support local news.

The Committee also invites submissions on the future of public service media more broadly, asking what areas of media policy and regulation ought to be considered alongside the Charter Review, including:

• The relationships between the BBC and (a) wider UK Public Service Media, and (b) international media, such as streamers and video-sharing platforms;

• The priorities in the Government’s Creative Industries Sector Plan and Ofcom’s Transmission Critical report;

• The transition from traditional TV distribution (DTT) to TV via the internet (IPTV); and

• The challenges and opportunities of artificial intelligence.

The deadline for submissions is 17 April. To read more, click here.