Channel 4: Culture Secretary Michelle Donelan advises PM against privatisation

Michelle Donelan said "pursuing a sale at this point is not the right decision"

Culture Secretary Michelle Donelan has advised against the privatisation of Channel 4 in a letter to the prime minister that has leaked online.

In the letter, obtained by the News Agents podcast, Ms Donelan said there were "better ways to ensure Channel 4's sustainability" than privatisation.

Her predecessor Nadine Dorries, who planned to sell the government-owned channel, criticised the reversal.

But Ms Donelan said "pursuing a sale at this point is not the right decision".

A spokesperson for the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) did not confirm the U-turn. "We do not comment on speculation," they said.

"The DCMS Secretary of State has been clear that we are looking again at the business case for the sale of Channel 4. We will announce more on our plans in due course."

The plan to sell the broadcaster for a possible £1.5bn had faced opposition from Channel 4 executives and much of the TV industry. In September, the incoming culture secretary said she would "re-examine the business case" for privatisation.

Ms Donelan's recommendation to scrap the plan was made in a letter addressed to the prime minister, apparently written on Tuesday, which was obtained by The News Agents' Lewis Goodall.

In it, she wrote: "After reviewing the business case, I have concluded that pursuing a sale at this point is not the right decision and there are better ways to secure C4C's (Channel 4 Corporation) sustainability and that of the independent production sector."

She added that its role in supporting the independent production sector "would be very disrupted by a sale at a time when growth and economic stability are our priorities".

Dorries hits out

Responding to the leak, Ms Dorries said the privatisation was one of a number of "progressive" policies that were being "washed down the drain".

"Replaced with what? A policy at some time in the future to teach maths for longer with teachers we don't yet even have to do so," she wrote on Twitter, referring to a pledge expected to be made by PM Rishi Sunak in a speech later.

"Where is the mandate - who voted for this? Will now be almost impossible to face the electorate at a GE [general election] and expect voters to believe or trust our manifesto commitments."

Labour's shadow culture secretary Lucy Powell said: "The Conservatives' vendetta against Channel 4 was always wrong for Britain, growth in our creative economy, and a complete waste of everyone's time."

Pact, the trade association for independent TV production companies, welcomed the likely reversal.

Pact chief executive John McVay said: "The government has made the right decision to hit the stop button on Channel 4 privatisation. It was always a solution in search of a problem that didn't exist.

"Channel 4 has a unique position in the broadcasting ecosystem. Its commissioning model has supported British production companies from its inception, providing jobs for thousands of people across the UK. Moving to private ownership would have endangered this," he added.