Derry & NW rallies in support as BBC Radio Foyle journalists strike against cuts

The journalists were joined on the picketline on Friday by contributors, politicians, well wishers and representatives from other local media, as well as representatives from the National Union of Journalists, in solidarity. There were similar scenes outside BBC NI in Belfast.

Journalists across the BBC in the north recently voted overwhelmingly for the industrial action after major changes were implemented to programming at Radio Foyle and elsewhere despite a major grassroots campaign in opposition to the move.

Ian McGuinness, Irish organiser with the National Union of Journalists said the industrial action reflected the strength of feeling over the changes BBC management has imposed.

"This goes against the good instincts of journalists," he said. “They want to be out there covering the news, they don’t want to be out there making the news, they’d rather be covering the local elections. The fact that it may be one of the most historic elections ever and that Foyle and their Belfast colleagues are out on strike speaks volumes in and of itself.

"This is about public sector journalism; public service journalism. It’s about making sure they have the resources in Foyle and Belfast to cover the news stories that matter.

"The fact of the matter is that during the pandemic journalists were frontline workers, key workers counteracting hoaxes and misinformation and that seems to have been forgotten very quickly and these cuts being implemented have hit particularly hard here in Foyle and in Belfast.”

Mr McGuinness said the union were still in negotiations with BBC NI management, and added that he hoped management would realise “this is a clear message from the NUJ and its membership that it has to rethink and it has to re-engage and concede.”

Mr McGuinness said the BBC management had gone some way in acknowledging that the cuts have been too deep but said they needed to go much further.

He said the fact that people had shown up to the picket line with flasks of tea, coffee, soup and buns “showed that people care about their local radio station because their local radio station cares about them and the stories they have to tell.”

Mr McGuinness said there were also wider issues in the media industry especially in other local newsrooms and radio stations where staff who have left have not been replaced, and journalists facing much heavier workloads across Ireland the UK.

When the restructuring plans were first confirmed back in November 2022, BBC Northern Ireland said they were ‘to facilitate the enhancement of its digital video and online services and the savings that it will need to make over the coming period’.

At that time BBC NI said it was ‘proposing to close approximately 35-40 posts to contribute to its £2.3 million savings and reinvestment plans’.

Adam Smyth, Interim Director, BBC Northern Ireland, said: “These are challenging times and we face some difficult choices, none of which are easy."

"We have to find monies to maintain and develop our local presence on BBC iPlayer and to absorb cost pressures across different aspects of our work. Our concern in all of this will be to safeguard audience value and benefit and to remain mindful of the impact that this announcement will have on BBC staff in Northern Ireland.”