Ofcom investigates campaign on Ken Bruce radio show

Former longtime BBC Radio 2 presenter Ken Bruce now appears on Greatest Hits Radio

Ken Bruce's Greatest Hits Radio show is being investigated by Ofcom over the station's campaign calling for offenders to be prevented from refusing to attend sentencing hearings.

The broadcasting watchdog said on Monday it would look at whether the station had complied with rules around impartiality and accuracy.

This year's Face the Family petition has been made directly to Parliament.

It was mentioned by a newsreader on Bruce's show on 13 April.

The broadcast also included clips in support of the campaign which directed listeners to a website.

The petition, signed by more than 13,000 people, was broadcast more than 30 times on the station, calling for new laws to "require offenders to be in court for sentencing, to give victims and their families every chance to witness justice be delivered".

It was explained that this could involve court and prison staff being "given powers to use reasonable force to get offenders into the dock - as they do to transfer them from a court to prison."

Ofcom's spokesperson said the watchdog "does not seek to question the merits" of the campaign, which was broadcast more than 30 times on the radio station.

But they also noted how broadcasters are excluded from expressing views on "political and industrial controversy or current public policy".

'Local campaign journalism'

A Bauer spokesperson said: "We are working with Ofcom to better understand the investigation into the Face the Family campaign, which ran in news bulletins in two local areas of the UK.

"The series is the latest in our tradition of local campaign journalism, which helps people who feel unheard have a voice. We are confident in our journalism and are committed to helping Ofcom with its investigation."

Justice Secretary Alex Chalk this month said he was committed to proposals to introduce legislation so that convicted criminals would have to appear in court for their sentencing.

Speaking to ITV News, he said he was "looking at what levers are open to us - whether you're talking about physically forcing people to court, or giving people an additional sentence as a result. We are looking very hard at this."

It comes after the killer of Zara Aleena in east London, Jordan McSweeney, refused to attend his sentencing, something her family described as "a slap in the face".

Thomas Cashman would not face the family of nine-year-old Olivia Pratt-Korbel either, as he was jailed for life for her murder in Liverpool.