Tory MP to report BBC to Ofcom over council cuts programme
Stephen Hammond believes The Street That Cut Everything, to be aired later this year, compromises the BBC's editorial integrity
A Tory MP is reporting the BBC to Ofcom, claiming the corporation's editorial integrity is compromised after a documentary crew took 20 dogs into a residential street to foul it to test how a community would cope if all council services were cut.
The programme, The Street That Cut Everything, will be presented by the BBC's political editor, Nick Robinson.
As part of the programme the film producers brought the 20 dogs, with their owners, to the cul-de-sac in Preston, Lancashire, to film them fouling the pavements.
The residents were given a council tax rebate while rubbish collection, street cleaning and street lights were cut.
Stephen Hammond, the Tory MP who is reporting the BBC to Ofcom, said: "This is an outrageous piece of scaremongering by the BBC and compromises their editorial integrity. We need a full and frank explanation from the organisation about how and why this is a good use of taxpayers cash.
"I shall be reporting them to Ofcom for what quite frankly is a unforgivable breach of editorial standards."
An aide to Pickles said: "It compromises their editorial integrity. They are creating a hypothetical situation where all services are cut that will never happen. Quite clearly this isn't a responsible thing for them to be doing."
Preston council's Conservative leader, Ken Hudson, also criticised the programme, and said he did not believe it was a good way to spend licence fee-payers' money. "I don't think that by putting 20 dogs on a street to make sure that the street gets fouled by dog droppings is good television really," he said. "We know that the people of the street are a really caring community and I am not sure that they knew just what they were letting themselves in for. I am not sure whether they expected to be picking up dog dirt."
He went on: "We are absolutely appalled that people are l! eaving d irt on the streets. Normally we would prosecute people for doing that."
A BBC spokesman said: "This programme will explore how a community faces up to the choices involved in living in an era of cuts, and examine the way in which people act as a group when confronted with limited resources and difficult decisions. The filming of the dog-walking scene demonstrates in exaggerated form one of the challenges residents would face if street cleaning services were cut. The residents rose to the challenge and cleaned up the small amount of dog dirt extremely quickly."
The programme will air later this year.
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