An announcement over funding for the coming year could happen as soon as next week, securing a last minute reprieve for the World Service.
- Funding runs out at the end of March
- BBC wants the Government to fully fund the service
- Partial licence fee funding controversial with BBC having to choose between UK and international audiences
The BBC could be handed a real-term freeze in funding for the World Service, that would nevertheless keep the international broadcaster on air. Less than three weeks before current funding runs out, the deal is not likely to deliver on aims to fully offload the cost of running the World Service from licence fee payers.
According to the Financial Times, which first reported the development, an announcement could come as soon as early next week.
Although the World Service no longer serves one of its original purposes of connecting Britons abroad with news from home—a role overtaken by the internet—it remains widely regarded as a key instrument of UK “soft power” globally.
The FT noted that negotiations are still ongoing and that the final terms of the agreement could change in the coming days.
The World Service runs multiple radio networks in various languages alongside its core English‑language service, which is available on all major UK digital TV platforms and DAB radio. Over the past decade, several language services have moved online‑only due to budget cuts. In some regions, former BBC analogue frequencies have since been taken over by foreign state broadcasters, including Russian outlets—an outcome the BBC has cited in arguing for continued government support.
At the expense of UK audiences?
The World Service currently operates on a £400m annual budget. In 2025–26, the government contributed £137m, with the £200m+ remainder funded by the licence fee – an arrangement that has increasingly squeezed UK-focused BBC services after multiple rounds of cuts.
The World Service itself has also faced significant reductions, with its main English‑language network now co-branded BBC News | World Service after losing most non‑news programming.
Until 2014, the government fully funded the World Service. The BBC has repeatedly said it wants that arrangement restored.
While the corporation has expanded commercial operations overseas through BBC Studios, the World Service’s public‑interest remit and target audiences leave limited scope for generating revenue independently.
By: Marc Thornham