Ex-Ofcom boss praises GB News for reflecting 'agenda of the majority' and swipes at People's Channel critics

The 83-year-old, who stepped down as Ofcom’s chair in April after a four-year tenure, said the same rules apply to GB News as to any other broadcaster and its different editorial choices did not make the channel wrong.

Speaking openly for the first time since leaving the TV regulator, the Conservative peer said: “I honestly think they're (GB News’s critics) embarrassed by the fact that there is a news organisation that has a different news agenda to them, that speaks to the agenda of the majority — if you look at the polls, a large swathe of the voting population, who have no voice on the BBC."

He continued: "Immigration, Brexit, these are all issues that don't get the weight on the BBC, or haven't been able to, that GB News will give, so what's the problem?"

Lord Grade acknowledged GB News had "not always played by the rules" but said it had been penalised accordingly and had improved significantly over time, PoliticsHome reports.

"They've actually got better and better. It's not difficult to comply – sometimes it's only a sentence in a script,” he said.

He insisted Britain's News Channel was held to the same standards as its rivals, saying: "The same rules apply to GB News as apply to the BBC, Sky, ITN, whoever.

“Because GB News make different editorial choices necessarily on each news day from the BBC, ITN or Sky, doesn't make it wrong."

The veteran television executive, who oversaw some of Britain's most celebrated programmes across four decades at ITV, the BBC and Channel 4, was appointed Ofcom chair by Boris Johnson in 2022.

He said what had drawn him to the role was not broadcasting regulation but a growing concern about online safety.

With the Online Safety Act passing in 2023, this gave Ofcom the power to fine companies up to £18million or 10 per cent of their global revenue for breaches of the legislation.

He acknowledged the regulator faced a significant challenge in enforcing the law against technology giants with "unlimited access to the best legal brains" who would "challenge everything we do”.

The media veteran also warned British television was in a perilous state, rating his optimism about its future at just two out of ten.

He said: "I am very, very worried. The creative industries are one of the most important growth sectors of the economy.

“The bedrock of that is public service media, and if we lose public service media, eventually that will ripple through into our position as a major provider of international exports, soft power."

He expressed concern about the future of high-end British drama, saying shows such as Happy Valley and Wolf Hall were "very much at risk" as it became increasingly unaffordable for public service broadcasters to produce them.

He said: "Something's got to happen, because what we're at risk of losing is big drama designed specifically for the British audience."

The former TV boss defended the licence fee as the only viable funding model for the BBC, but called for it to be made progressive, arguing it was wrong for the wealthy to pay the same as those on low incomes.

He said: "It's wrong that I pay the same as a single mum with three kids in a rented room somewhere – it's just wrong."

He also said the BBC remained too large and should consider selling off parts of its physical estate, particularly outside London, to bring down costs and allow the licence fee to be reduced.

When asked about whether the Conservatives and Reform UK should form an electoral pact ahead of the next general election, Lord Grade said the two parties should “slug it out” and any agreement should only be considered in the event of a hung Parliament.

He said: "You can do a confidence and supply agreement; you don't have to have a coalition – see who's got most seats."

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