BBC strikes averted as talks resume

Next week's strikes at the BBC were cancelled last night after unions agreed to more talks, but BBC management warned that the corporation has "not changed its pension reform package in any way".

Yesterday, the National Union of Journalists called off planned industrial action due to run on Monday and Tuesday of next week so that talks with the BBC could resume.

Radio 4's Today programme and BBC Two's Newsnight were forced off the air last week due to strike action, prompted by the BBC's proposed changes to its generous final salary pension scheme.

After a day of frantic negotiation, the NUJ agreed to cancel further strikes on the proviso that the BBC dropped disciplinary action against three BBC journalists in the US who supported the strikes.

The deal was brokered by Gerry Morrissey, general secretary of broadcasting union Bectu, who is representing the five BBC unions whose members will be affected by the changes - Bectu, the NUJ, Unite, Equity and the Musicians' Union. The BBC and the unions will now meet to "clarify" certain aspects of the pension proposals.

Morrissey wrote to the BBC yesterday asking for it to commit to reopening negotiations with unions if the pension deficit is less than £1.5bn when it is next valued.

The actual size of the deficit has been a major point of dispute between BBC management and staff, but there is no indication that the corporation will move on this issue.

In an email to staff, BBC director general Mark Thompson welcomed the NUJ's decision to call off next week's 48-hour strike. He said that the move will enable the BBC to "deliver our news and current affairs programmes and services to audiences here and around the world without interruption or loss of quality".

Thompson said that the BBC will give "greater clarity about how the pension reform package will work", including the areas of concern outlined by Morrissey.

However, he stressed that the BBC has "not changed its pension reform package in any way". Thompson added: "We cannot afford to revisit the terms of the agreement we reached with the joint unions at the beginning of October and will not do so."