NATIONAL AUDIT OFFICE AND THE BBC

That this House believes that the Government should reconsider its rejection of the proposal in the independent Sharman Committee Report that the BBC should be subject to full National Audit Office (NAO) access to and auditing of its accounts; notes that this would bring it within examination by the Public Accounts Committee (PAC); believes that the BBC should be open to Value For Money analysis by the NAO and PAC; dismisses BBC allegations that it would lead to interference in programming; reminds the Government and BBC Governors that the NAO and PAC have examined the accounts of the BBC Overseas Service for many years; notes that a principal Overseas Service witness confirmed in a public session of PAC that the Committee had never tried to interfere in editorial matters; and reminds the BBC that it has the privilege of receiving what is in effect a mandatory tax on virtually every household in the UK.