New BBC boss announces 550 job cuts... while on holiday

Anita SinghWed, June 17, 2026 at 3:28 PM UTC

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Matt Brittin, the BBC's director-general, warned staff there would be compulsory redundancies - Getty

The new BBC director-general is on holiday while unveiling his first round of job cuts and programme closures, The Telegraph can disclose.

Matt Brittin sent an email to staff this morning announcing that "tough choices" had been made, including the loss of 550 roles. Most employees were unaware that, a month into the role, Mr Brittin was on a week-long break.

BBC sources said the annual leave was booked before Mr Brittin started the job, and bosses in divisions affected by the cuts wished to press ahead with the announcement rather than delay it until his return.

Earlier this week, he dialled in to a video call with the corporation's executive committee, as well as several board meetings. He is due back at work next week, and is expected to host an all-staff call on Tuesday.

Details of the BBC cuts were delivered to staff throughout the morning.

Radio 4 will lose The World Tonight, first broadcast in 1970, along with the Midnight News, Money Box Live, AntiSocial, The Law Show and Crossing Continents. All will close during the next year.

The BBC's new boss wants the corporation to grow its audience on social media and improve the iPlayer - Getty

Amol Rajan will not be replaced when he leaves the Today programme, which will stick to a roster of four permanent presenters rather than five.

Meanwhile, Justin Webb, a permanent Today presenter, has been linked with a potential move to Paramount-owned CBS.

Bari Weiss, the new editor-in-chief of CBS News, met Mr Webb in London in recent months, industry magazine Deadline reported. CBS recently poached Sir Trevor Phillips from Sky News to become its new senior global affairs correspondent.

BBC World Service programmes The Inquiry, The Conversation and The Fifth Floor will also go.

On television, reporters and presenters will be encouraged to film videos on their mobile phones rather than use camera crews. The number of BBC News chief presenter roles may be cut.

In total, there will be a net reduction of 550 roles across the News, Nations and Content divisions, part of the 2,000 job losses to come over the next three years.

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In his email to staff, Mr Brittin said: "The scale of savings requires tough choices, careful work and won't all be ready at once. We are committed to letting you know as soon as we have plans in your area.

"We live in very uncertain times. Our audiences rely on us every day to keep them informed, entertained and equipped to make sense of the world. Making savings while fulfilling our mission means a doubly difficult time for everyone. We will also have to close some programmes. These are difficult choices."

£80m news and programmes budget cut

Programmes with the highest audience "value and impact" will be safe. The commissioning budget for programmes and news will be reduced by £80m in 2027-28.

Cuts to channels could include merging BBC Four with BBC Two, and the closure of BBC Three.

Another 700 job losses in the corporate division will be set out in the next few months. The total cost savings will be £160m by the end of this financial year.

Mr Brittin joined the BBC in May, replacing Tim Davie, and warned then that he would be making "some difficult choices about the size and shape of the BBC for the future".

He has indicated that he wants to see more investment in the iPlayer service, which he has criticised for its inferior user experience. The former Google executive also wants to focus on social media where audiences, particularly younger audiences, increasingly access news and other content.

Before joining the BBC, he took what he described as a "midlife gap year", which he spent paddleboarding, taking a pottery course, travelling to Patagonia and spending time with his family.

He said in a recent podcast that taking time off had allowed him to recharge and to be "fully there with 100% of my battery power". He was previously responsible for running Google's operations in Europe, the Middle East and Africa.

Philippa Childs, head of the Bectu union, said in response to the announcement: "These cuts, while expected, will still be devastating for the workforce and to the BBC as a whole. It seems clear that cuts will have a direct impact on programming and output, and audiences will also notice the effects."

Roger Mosey, former head of BBC Television News, criticised the decision to make cuts in News.

He said on X: "It's clear that the BBC has to make cuts. The questions are whether they're the right ones – and slashing News is a bad start. And how can the government say the BBC is a vital national service and see it steadily defunded in this way?"

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Source: “AOL Money”