Eight BBC Trust Members Appointed

LONDON, October 12: Culture secretary Tessa Jowell has
announced the appointment of eight remaining members of the new BBC Trust that
will replace the Board of Governors starting January 1, 2007.

Michael Grade, chairman-designate of the new BBC Trust,
welcomed Chitra Bharucha, Diane
Coyle, Alison Hastings, Patricia Hodgson, Rotha Johnston, Janet Lewis-Jones, David
Liddiment and Mehmuda Mian Pritchard as the new members.

"The new BBC Trust has a very different role from that
of the Board of Governors it replaces,” said Grade. "The new Charter requires
that the Trust is independent of BBC management, representing the interests of
license fee payers. We must consult the public to ensure our decisions are
properly informed by those who pay for the BBC.”

The new trustees will join Grade, Dermot Gleeson, Jeremy
Peat and Richard Tait to complete the 12-member BBC Trust. The 12 individuals
are from around the U.K. and bring a wide variety of experience and expertise
from broadcasting, regulation, newspapers, commerce, competition and economics.

"The Trust will recognize that every license fee payer
also has an interest in the wider choice offered across the industry,” Grade
added. "For the first time, the public will help set the strategic agenda
for its BBC."