[House]

I do think there’s an argument for the news channel (post election) having a permanent opt out between, say, 11:00-13:00 and 14:00-16:00. Four hours a day could realistically be staffed by a single shift in terms of crew and studio (and only a slight uptick in what’s already provided by the breaking opt-out team) while also providing quality UK output which can be packaged and reused across the BBC (interviews, analysis segments etc.) and cover the periods of the day where breaking news and live events are most likely.

I appreciate there will be slightly higher news gathering costs as a result (including booking guests) and any live OBs, but a good compromise over running two full time channels. I actually don’t think the channel being merged has been a major problem outside of those four hours. From June you’ll already have UK coverage simulcast from 6-9, 1pm-2pm and at 6pm and 10pm. The current 9-11am tends to focus more on a fast paced bulletin than in-depth coverage of international stories.

I think a lot of the other problems with the channel have been focussing on a debate-style format at times (and presentation) rather than running order.