Nicola Sturgeon coronavirus briefings: Ofcom rejects BBC bias claims

The regulator examined 16 hours of broadcasts aired between September and December last year after complainers alleged the BBC was giving an unfair platform to the SNP.

However, the body concluded there were no issues which warranted an official investigation under the Broadcasting Code. Several complaints were lodged about various briefings on the BBC One Scotland and the BBC Scotland channels. They alleged that the shows breached due impartiality rules because they supposedly gave Sturgeon and the SNP "a platform to promote their views on ongoing policy matters in Scotland without any opportunity being given to other Scottish political parties to express theirs".

A statement from Ofcom reads: "Having taken into account the broadcaster’s and audience’s rights to freedom of expression, and all relevant contextual factors and editorial techniques, Ofcom considered that, in the programmes that we assessed, where statements were made by the First Minister or other Scottish ministers in the updates which could have been construed as critical of the UK Government’s policies and actions or as promoting the SNP policies in relation to the handling of the crisis, these were appropriately contextualised, and alternative viewpoints on the issues relating to the policies and actions of the Scottish Government, and to the extent they were discussed, the UK Government’s policies and actions, were sufficiently represented, to ensure that due impartiality was preserved.

READ MORE: Who is the man who could decide Nicola Sturgeon's future?

"Ofcom therefore did not consider that the programmes raised any issues warranting investigation under the Code. Consequently, Ofcom has decided to not pursue these complaints further."

The regulator did point out that during her briefing on October 23, the First Minister touched on issues which were considered to be related to “controversial” political debates.

This came when the First Minister and Economy Secretary Fiona Hyslop called on the UK Government to extend the furlough scheme, warning a failure to do so “would lead to a very sharp increase in unemployment and could also harm our longer-term prospects”.

Yet Ofcom ruled that Sturgeon’s comments were not at risk of breaking impartiality rules once placed in their proper context.

The report stated: "Some of these statements were the expression of the First Minister’s and her party’s position on controversial policy matters or had the potential to be understood as criticisms of the UK Government’s policies and actions in relation to the handling of the pandemic crisis and Brexit.

"In this case, however, we took into account that the First Minister’s statements were relatively brief and, apart from the October 23, 2020 programme, were given in response to questions from journalists, which were themselves challenging her and the Scottish Government’s policies on the handling of the crisis.

"In our view, given the brevity of the statements in the updates by the First Minister and other Scottish ministers which touched on matters of major political controversy and major matters relating to current public policy, the journalists’ questions throughout the question and answer sessions provided sufficient challenge and contextualisation to the First Minister’s statements ensuring that due impartiality was preserved, taking into account the subject matter and nature of the programme overall.

READ MORE: Labour lord demands BBC blackout on Nicola Sturgeon's Covid briefing

“We also took into account that, in the programmes which Ofcom assessed, the First Minister regularly acknowledged the collaborative working relationship and constructive discussions between the Scottish Government, the UK Government and the administrations in Wales and Northern Ireland, and reflected that all four administrations were trying to achieve the same objective of stopping the virus from spreading further and trying to save lives and support the economy.”

It continued: “In our view therefore, these statements added further context to comments made by the First Minister on the matters of major political controversy and major matters relating to current public policy which were being discussed."

Ofcom also concluded that BBC One Scotland’s coverage of the briefings provided sufficient “contextualisation" for them to be broadcast without any concern of bias.

The regulator said the first part of the First Minister’s update briefings are primarily focused on factual and statistical information on public health.

"We considered that in these circumstances, broadcasters were likely to want to broadcast content about the pandemic and there was a clear public interest in the communication of accurate and up-to date information to audiences about the coronavirus, including official public health advice and governmental policy and legal measures being taken to try to stop the virus from spreading," the report read.

"It was clearly signalled to the audience by the way that the programmes introduced the updates given by the First Minister that these would include discussion of pandemic-related issues.

"In light of this signalling and the general context in which the briefings took place, it was our view that the audience of the programmes assessed would have expected the programmes to include discussion of pandemic-related issues, including the measures adopted by the Scottish Government to protect others and stop transmission of the virus.”

Ofcom added: "In these particular circumstances, given the initial part of the First Minister’s updates focused on providing factual and statistical information and public health advice and statements about the measures the Scottish Government had taken in response to the pandemic, we did not consider that alternative viewpoints to the one presented by the First Minister, or other Scottish Minister or officials (where relevant), were required to be included for due impartiality to be preserved in relation to these matters, which were appropriately contextualised."