Will the Channel 4 sale go ahead?

There’ll be corks popping in Horseferry Road tonight. Following the Queen’s funeral yesterday, normal politics has now resumed with gusto. Culture Secretary Michelle Donelan was duly wheeled out on Sky this morning, where she revealed that the government is now ‘reexamining the business case’ over the privatisation of Channel 4.

It comes after extensive lobbying from the arts industry, with hundreds of producers, directors and stars urging ministers to call off the sale. Donelan’s appointment to the post follows the departure of Nadine Dorries, an ardent advocate of flogging off the right-on broadcaster, arguing it will struggle to survive in the era of Netflix. Now it seems that the change of minister has brought with it a change of policy too.

And that’s probably no surprise when one considers Channel 4’s own rearguard efforts to avoid privatisation. In June, Mr S pointed out that C4 had given away a five-figure sum in free tickets to MPs for the BAFTAs and their TV equivalent. And now Mr S has discovered just how much is being spent by its public affairs team, with a Freedom of Information request revealing that they spent £479,676.14 on agencies and consultancies working on public affairs and communications in 2020.

This, according to C4, is so that the channel can ‘communicate directly with all its audiences regarding the breadth of its on-air and off-air activity.’ Given such efforts, perhaps it’s not a surprise to see the new minister reconsidering the sale so soon…