BBC Trust Receives Petition to Save BBC Three

LONDON: Campaigners looking to save BBC Three have delivered a petition with more than 270,000 signatures to the BBC Trust on the final day of a public consultation on the future of the network.

The BBC previously announced plans to close the linear station and move BBC Three to an online-only service. The move is part of a cost-saving effort that would help the BBC cut its budget by £50 million ($77 million). The decision is subject to the approval of the BBC Trust, which ran a public consultation that ends today.

As of now, the plans are that BBC Three will be moved to the online iPlayer service in fall 2015, and its budget cut from £85 million ($130 million) to £25 million ($38 million), of which £30 million ($46 million) will be invested in drama on BBC One. It would be the first TV channel to be decommissioned in the BBC's history.

Labour MP John McDonnell said he "fully supports the campaign" to save BBC Three. "I urge the BBC management to reconsider their proposal to close a television channel for the first time in the history of the institution. BBC Three has consistently given birth to popular, innovative content and its closure would be a loss to our diverse, high-quality public service broadcasting in this country."