Alliance response to BBC Trust Review into rural programming

The Countryside Alliance welcomes Heather Hancock's review of the BBC's rural coverage and applauds her view that rural issues should be better covered by the BBC.

Executive chairman of the Alliance, Barney White-Spunner said: "Ms Hancock makes some excellent recommendations, especially her calls for rural business, economic and social issues to be covered as well as those concerning the environment and the reinstatement of the post of BBC rural affairs correspondent.

"The number of groups the BBC turns to when stories break also needs to be increased and we would appreciate a less simplistic view of rural affairs, broadcast for those who live in the country as well as those who use it.

"It's now up to the BBC to implement the recommendations and we shall be watching carefully. We note that they have already announced some responses but superficial changes will not be enough – the changes the BBC needs to make are fundamental."

We were invited to be part of the BBC Trust Review, and our main issue in our response was that the BBC's coverage is like an audio-visual version of the National Trust magazine, viewing the countryside as a giant leisure park, to be visited and enjoyed before returning to "normal" places.

Excerpt from our response to the review: "Coverage centres on things to do and see, and is predominately presented by people who are urban in tone and outlook and country people, when they are featured, are often presented as curiosities.

"The BBC would rather interview a thatcher or a guy whittling walking sticks than speak to a struggling small farmer about the massive agri-business opening down the road, or the lack of abattoirs. The reality that country issues can be as difficult, distressing and controversial as anyone else's doesn't fit with the BBC's light-touch magazine format.

"Local radio and TV is better, not least because it is produced for the local audience, but it is by definition less powerful in terms of public opinion than national television.

"Rural people have the same concerns as anyone else about crime, the economy, the NHS etc, but we are also different in some ways from our urban peers in terms of the issues we face and how we view them.

"We are not uniform in what we think, how we vote or, indeed, anything else. In this we're the same as people living anywhere in the UK. The BBC should be unafraid of recognising these facts and using them to create better programming."