The Government has announced that a PSB Advisory Panel has been appointed to provide “independent expertise and advice”, as part of the Government’s review of PSB. The Panel will advise Ministers on key policy issues relevant to the future of PSB, including:

• whether the concept of PSB is still needed, and, if so, what a modern PSB system should contribute to economic, cultural and democratic life across the UK;
• how PSB should be delivered in an age where media consumption is increasingly diversified, including considering the roles of different organisations, platforms, and services; this will include, for example, consideration of the future role of the Channel 4 Television Corporation;
• whether the legislative and regulatory framework for PSB, when viewed in the context of the media landscape as a whole, needs to change to ensure that the PSB system can continue to deliver sustainably on its objectives; and
• whether the current funding model for PSB is sustainable in the longer term and remains fit for purpose. For the avoidance of doubt, the Panel will not consider or advise on the licence fee settlement for the period from 2022.

It shall do this by:

• considering the issues raised by, and recommendations resulting from, Ofcom in its PSB Review, entitled “Small Screen: Big Debate”;
• bringing to bear members’ personal experience and expertise on the policy debates;
• leveraging external expertise, including by supporting the commissioning of independent research where appropriate; and
• sharing its conclusions with government in a format to be determined by the Panel.

The Panel may make recommendations about policy and process, but ultimate responsibility for these decisions will remain with DCMS Ministers and the Government.

The members of the panel are:

• Baroness Bertin – Senior Advisor at BT and former Press Secretary to David Cameron;
• Miranda Curtis CMG – Non-Executive Director of Liberty Global;
• Sir Robbie Gibb – British broadcast journalist, former Head of BBC Westminster and Director of Communications at No10;
• Lord Grade of Yarmouth CBE – Former Chief Executive of Channel 4, Chairman of the BBC Board of Governors, and Executive Chairman of ITV plc;
• Andrew Griffith MP – Member of Parliament for Arundel and South Downs, former Chief Operating Officer & CFO of Sky Group plc and Chairman of the Royal Television Society 2017 Cambridge Convention;
• John Hardie – Former CEO and Editor-in-Chief at ITN;
• Nicola Mendelsohn CBE – Vice President for Europe, Middle East, and Africa at Facebook;
• Dr Samir Shah CBE – Chief Executive of Juniper Productions, Chair of the Museum of the Home and former Deputy Chair, V&A;
• Sophie Turner Laing OBE – Former CEO of Endemol Shine Group; and
• Jane Turton – Chief Executive of All3Media.

Members have been appointed in a voluntary capacity and on the basis of their personal experience, not as representatives of their respective organisations. They will meet up to six times a year, and additional members will be co-opted as and when required by the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport. For further information, click here.