BBC 's commitment to region could be a catalyst for investment - Chamber

The BBC 's decision to move key departments and staff to Birmingham could be a catalyst for further investment in the city-region, business leaders said today.

The broadcaster announced “a top-to-bottom change ” yesterday with entire departments and news divisions moving to Birmingham, Cardiff, Leeds and Salford.

As part of the changes, the Newsbeat team is relocating to Birmingham, while the Second City will also become the new base for the Asian Network.

News and current affairs programmes like BBC Two 's Newsnight will be presented from different UK bases through the year, while Radio 4's flagship Today programme is to be co-presented from outside London for at least 100 episodes a year.

The BBC Concert Orchestra and some Proms are also to leave London and the broadcaster has promised 100 new reporters to be based in towns and areas that have never had a regional TV presence.

Other plans for the West Midlands include:

• the BBC News Data Team partly relocating to Birmingham
• at least one new primetime drama series and one new primetime entertainment series will be commissioned in the region
• BBC local radio launching a new peak time local radio service for Wolverhampton
• new Learning Hubs in Birmingham and Wolverhampton
• BBC Three launching a documentary opportunity for producers to tell original stories from the region
• The BBC piloting an Apprentice Training Agency in the West Midlands
• Regional BBC One HD services to launch

Henrietta Brealey (pictured), chief strategy officer at Greater Birmingham Chambers of Commerce, said: “Birmingham is young, creative, diverse - a melting pot of talent and ambition at the heart of the nation. It 's a natural choice for investment.

“This announcement is great news for the region by itself. We also hope to see it act as a catalyst for further investment both from the wider media industry and the BBC themselves in due course.

“TV and film alone is a huge industry with substantial economic impact and rewarding careers.

“The investment announced by the BBC, not just in increasing roles, production and commissioning in the region but also creating centres of excellence on training and youth development, represents a real opportunity to grow our regional talent pool in this space.

“It also comes just days after the Department for Transport announced their own significant investment in creating roles in the city and is another welcome boost and reminder of the city 's strengths as we start to look post-pandemic. ”

Dr Jason Wouhra, president of the Asian Business Chamber of Commerce, welcomed the news about the Asian Network moving to Birmingham.

He said: "It is great to see the BBC Asian Network is moving to Birmingham. The Asian Network is listened to by most of the Asian community in the UK and it is wonderful to see that they have decided to choose the UK 's first ethnic majority city as its home."