Newsnight shortened to 30-minute ‘discussion show’ under BBC cuts

Mark Urban, the BBC diplomatic editor and presenter of last night’s show, said: “I have worked on the programme for 32 years, around the world, risking my life many times for its journalism. You can well imagine my feelings at cuts to our staff and budget of more than 50 per cent.”

Newsnight’s successes include the 2019 interview with Prince Andrew, which was nominated for a Bafta and a Royal Television Society award. But ratings are in decline, falling from the 1.1 million who watched Jeremy Paxman’s final programme in 2014.

Kirsty Wark, who has presented the show for 30 years, recently announced that she is to step down after the next election.

Ms Turness tried to assuage the critics, saying: “There will be people – both inside and outside the BBC – who’ll worry this change means less investigative journalism across BBC News. That Newsnight’s particular type of gritty, independent, dogged reporting will disappear, leaving the BBC poorer for it.

“This will not be the case.”

She added: “Like many businesses, we are in a tough financial climate and as our audiences shift rapidly from TV to online news consumption we need to make choices about where we allocate our resources.

“While TV and radio remain crucial to BBC News, we must invest in our digital platforms to ensure they are also the home of our very best journalism, and today’s package of measures will accelerate this transformation.”