Trust rejects SNP, Plaid debate appeal

The BBC Trust has rejected an appeal from the Scottish National Party and Plaid Cymru about their exclusion from the BBC's upcoming prime ministerial debate.

The two parties made a joint submission to the Trust about BBC director general Mark Thompson's decision to dismiss their initial complaint about the debate lock-out.

Plaid and the SNP argue that their exclusion from the BBC's debate programme on April 29 will represent a breach of the corporation's guidelines for maintaining impartiality.

They also claim that the BBC has "abdicated its editorial independence" by allowing Labour, the Conservatives and the Liberal Democrats to "dictate the terms of the format" to the detriment of voters in Wales and Scotland.

The two parties further believe that the corporation has offered "inadequate compensatory coverage" across its broadcast platforms.

Despite the Trust initially advising the SNP and Plaid to prepare for a possible oral appeal on their submission, a committee of BBC trustees has decided against that course of action.

The five-strong committee - including trustee for Scotland Jeremy Peat and trustee for Wales Janet Lewis-Jones - met yesterday to consider the appeal. They said that complaints relating to impartiality, inadequate coverage and exclusion from format negotiations were admissible as "matters of substance".

However, the trustees noted that Thompson has not "not erred in his approach" to which parties should participate in the debate. The committee further decided that efforts to provide balanced coverage for the SNP and Plaid Cymru have been "reasonable and adequate to maximise the achievement of due impartiality".

Speaking about the verdict, Trust chairman Sir Michael Lyons said: "The Trust is fully aware that this is an important matter for licence fee payers in Scotland and Wales and the political parties of those nations.

"We are also fully aware that the BBC has a duty to ensure impartiality in covering the general election. In reaching our conclusions, we have considered the appeal very carefully against the BBC Editorial and Election Guidelines and in-line with our responsibilities set out in the [Royal] Charter."

BBC trustee Richard Tait, who chaired the committee, added: "The BBC's obligations to impartiality are a central part of the Trust's responsibilities and we are satisfied that the arrangements for the debate on April 29 are consistent with the BBC Editorial and Election Guidelines.

"However, we will be writing to the director-general to emphasise the BBC's responsibilities during this election period with respect to the expectations of licence fee payers in the nations."

The SNP and Plaid Cymru have also submitted a complaint to Ofcom about their exclusion from last week's prime ministerial debate on ITV1.

The media regulator has responded by establishing a five-strong election committee to investigate the complaint and others, with results due to be published next week.