BBC News to bear deepest cuts amid 2,000 planned job losses

The BBC’s news operation is to cut costs by a steeper-than-expected 15%, with staff told to expect heavy redundancies. The division, home to about a quarter of all BBC staff, is being saddled with one of the highest cost-cutting targets as the corporation attempts to cut as many as 2,000 jobs in the biggest downsizing of the public service broadcaster in 15 years . Last month, staff were informed that, on average across the BBC, about 10% of the corporation’s 21,500 employees would be affected as part of a £600m cost-cutting plan, but it was not clear at the time that news operations would see even deeper cuts. The development comes as Matt Brittin, the former top Google executive, takes over as the corporation’s new director general from 18 May. His appointment came after the resignation of Tim Davie in November after highly contested claims of bias were made by a former adviser to the corporation. It also followed the BBC’s apology for the way it had edited a speech by Donald Trump, which led the US president to sue the corporation. Staff at divisions across the BBC are being informed of the level of cuts, with details to be announced in June, and those affected to be told in September. During a video meeting held with BBC News staff, understood to have been attended by about 300 employees, staff were told to expect significantly deeper cuts than the 10% pan-BBC target. BBC News has been heavily hit by rounds of cuts in recent years . …