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In performing its commercial role, BBC Worldwide conforms to domestic and European Competition Law. In addition, and unlike its competitors, BBC Worldwide is subject to further requirements to trade fairly, under the BBC's Royal Charter.
These requirements are available at:
www.bbc.co.uk/info/policies/commercial_guides.
In particular, the BBC's Fair Trading Commitment requires BBC Worldwide:
- to pay fair charges for any goods or services received from other parts of the BBC, and price its goods and services fairly when sold;
- to comply with published criteria setting out what commercial activities are appropriate for the BBC as a public-service broadcaster;
- not to use, or put at risk, public funds - BBC Worldwide does not have access to licence payers' revenues or other public funds;
- to be part of an annual audit, undertaken for the BBC by external auditors.
As part of their audit of the BBC's Fair Trading system
of internal controls, the BBC's Fair Trading auditors have
carried out |
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selective testing of aspects of the Fair Trading
systems and procedures adopted by BBC Worldwide. The
auditors do not issue an opinion on the Fair Trading systems
operated by any particular business of the BBC. However,
the audit work undertaken by them on the BBC Worldwide
Fair Trading systems and procedures has formed part of their
evidence in delivering their opinion to the BBC Governors
on the compliance of the BBC overall, with its Fair-trading
Commitment. A copy of their report is included in the BBC's
Annual Report*. The auditors' report needs to be read in full
but in summary confirms that the BBC overall has established
and has applied a system of internal controls, which provide
reasonable assurance that it has complied with its Fair-trading
Commitment for the year ended 31 March 2005.
In addition to the report from the auditors, the BBC's Annual
Statement also contains the following statement from the
Governors of the BBC on the BBC's compliance with the
Fair-trading Commitment:
The Governors consider that the policies contained in the
BBC's Fair-trading Commitment are consistent with the
requirements of the Royal Charter and the accompanying
Agreement. Through the Fair-trading Compliance
Committee, they have gained reasonable assurance that
the system of controls and procedures designed to ensure
that these policies are applied throughout the BBC has been
operating effectively throughout the year.
* www.bbcgovernors.co.uk
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