BBC Arabic Service

(asked on 23rd March 2023) - View Source

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government whether they had any metrics in place to quantify the soft power advantage of the BBC Arabic radio service during its 85 years of broadcasting; what assessment they have made of any loss of soft power to the UK following its closure on 27 January; and whether they have had any discussions on the matter with the BBC in 2023.


Answered by
 Portrait
Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
This question was answered on 6th April 2023

The FCDO strongly values the important work of the BBC World Service in providing accurate and impartial news to 365 million people globally each week.

The FCDO engages regularly with the BBC. The BBC and the Foreign Secretary periodically agree objectives, priorities and targets, which include audience reach metrics. However, the BBC remains operationally and editorially independent of Government and service delivery decisions are for them to take. Though BBC Arabic radio broadcasting has ceased, the service remains available via TV and digital platforms, reflecting audience trends. BBC Arabic is funded by the Licence Fee, with some additional support via the FCDO-funded 'World2020 programme'.

As stated in the Integrated Review Refresh, the UK Government is working to bring soft power into its broader foreign policy approach. This includes providing a one-off £20 million uplift to the World Service to protect all 42 language services, recognising its crucial role in supporting UK soft power and countering harmful disinformation.

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