STV journalists walk out over proposed job cuts and changes to news programme

Journalists at STV have walked out as part of a dispute over changes to news programmes in the north of Scotland.

The action comes after the broadcaster announced plans to cut the north edition of its flagship News At 6 programme, with 28 editorial jobs at stake.

The proposed change will see a single STV News At 6 programme produced and presented from Glasgow – with about 30% of the programme being specific to the north of Scotland area.

A total of 94% of National Union of Journalists (NUJ) members who voted in a strike ballot in December backed a walkout, while 98% supported action short of a strike.

At Holyrood, Culture Secretary Angus Robertson said: “The Scottish Government remains concerned there would be a negative impact on news provision across Scotland if these plans go ahead.”

While Mr Robertson accepted STV had “reconsidered” some of its proposals, he insisted Scottish ministers “will continue to champion a strong and sustainable Scottish broadcasting sector” and would urge against “any decisions that would result in further reductions in news reporting in Scotland or redundancies of Scottish-based staff”.

He spoke out after STV journalists took to picket lines outside the broadcaster’s offices in Glasgow and Aberdeen on Wednesday.

At the Glasgow walkout, the news team chanted “stop the cuts” and were cheered on by passers-by and commuters travelling through the city.

NUJ general secretary Laura Davidson was present at the picket line, and says the proposed cuts will affect not only the broadcaster’s staff, but will have a knock-on effect on the quality of journalism consumed by its viewers.

She said: “I think it’s a dispute that really resonates, because it affects everybody.

“If you watch the television and you watch the local news, if these cuts go through, there’s going to be a really visible impact on the reduction of local news and a more generic programme with fewer staff to produce it.

“It is a really important dispute for everybody to get behind, supporting our NUJ members here who are standing up for their own journalistic work and journalistic quality and local journalism, but also on behalf of the public.”

The NUJ branded the broadcaster’s plans both “bad for viewers” and “bad for journalism” in the north of Scotland.

In December, Ofcom launched a consultation for members of the public to share their views on the proposed changes at STV.

Ms Davidson encouraged viewers to submit their response before it closes on Friday January 9.

She said: “Ofcom is the arbiter of these proposals to cut the programmes, and they’ve got consultation that is running at the moment.

“So part of our campaign is really to encourage people to respond to the Ofcom consultation and explain to Ofcom just what the impact would be if these local programs are cut, reduction in local news in your area and that people don’t want that to happen.

“They want the local news to be preserved, and we need to think about ways that that can be made to happen.

“The commercial imperative can’t be the only … solution here. We need to think together about how we can resolve this issue and make sure that local news is protected.”

Nick McGowan-Lowe, NUJ national organiser for Scotland, previously said: “Our members are angry at the lack of leadership from the top of the company, angry at management’s handling of the proposed changes, and angry that their colleagues are facing compulsory redundancies because of the company’s financial mismanagement.

“It is not too late for management to rethink their plans and avoid damaging strikes.”

The company previously announced plans to replace both its central belt and north of Scotland news programmes with a single show from Glasgow, but these were “watered down” by STV bosses.

STV says it plans to share more content across its north and central programmes and that Ofcom has supported its proposals.

A spokesperson for STV said: “The NUJ’s action is ill-timed as consultation with unions and colleagues is ongoing and significant progress has been made in reducing the impact on jobs.

“As a result of our cost savings plan, 28 roles are impacted across our newsrooms, the majority of which have been achieved through voluntary redundancy or redeployment.

“Our request to Ofcom for changes to the news commitments in our licences, which they propose to accept, ensures the delivery of newsgathering and coverage right across Scotland on a sustainable basis for the company, and sees the expansion of our digital news service in response to changing news consumption.

“STV is a commercial business with public service commitments, which we are incredibly proud of, but for which we receive no public funding, and our proposals will protect our valued news service in the face of a dramatically changing media landscape.”

Ofcom did not wish to comment.