The Rt Hon William Hague MP
Foreign Secretary
Foreign and Commonwealth Office
King Charles Street
London SW1A 2AH

April 12th 2011

Dear William,
As I am sure you know, the BBC World Service has 180 million radio listeners - representing one in every 25 adults in the world. Thanks to cuts which include 16% of its £267 million government grant over the next five years there will be an estimated 30 million drop in the weekly global audience. At a time when countries such as Russia, China and Iran are investing heavily in their foreign-language media, it is perverse for the UK to reduce its funding for such broadcasts and it is misguided to also cut funding for BBC Monitoring's reporting of foreign media.

You have allocated £58.5 million of Foreign Office spending in the coming year ‘for the support of democratic values, human rights and British diplomatic influence overseas' -it is vital that this work is backed up the World Service as a voice which challenges corruption, exposes human rights abuses and promotes democratic values.

The NUJ tell me there has been a lack of consultation about these cuts, scant information and rushed timescales. Without adequate staffing levels and genuine resources the quality of BBC World Service journalism will be severely damaged so please use your influence with Government to review the funding situation and protect the BBC's global reputation.

Yours sincerely,

Caroline Lucas, MP, Brighton Pavilion