Regional news, current affairs and sports coverage at the ABC will be slashed and more than 400 jobs lost as budget cuts start to bite Australia's public broadcaster.
Managing director Mark Scott has revealed a raft of proposed changes to programming, operations and structures to offset A$254 million in lost government funding over the next five years. Around 10 per cent of ABC's workforce faces the axe, including management, with foreign bureaus restructured and a post opened in Beirut. "It's a sad day for all of us - no one takes any joy with the job cuts that we face," Scott said.
Prime Minister Tony Abbott has denied he broke an election pledge not to cut funding to the ABC and SBS. Abbott insisted his Government had "fundamentally kept faith with the Australian people. We never promised special treatment for the ABC or SBS."
The A$254 million cut is 4.6 per cent of the ABC's budget and means it will now receive about A$5.2 billion over five years rather than $5.5 billion.
