Vikki Slade Demands Ofcom Review for Failing to Regulate GB News and Royal Mail

The MP challenged Ofcom's handling of GB News and its oversight of Royal Mail’s poor service, warning that the regulator is becoming increasingly ineffective as Parliament hands it ever greater responsibilities.

Leading a Westminster Hall debate on the role and effectiveness of Ofcom, the Mid Dorset and North Poole MP questioned whether the regulator is doing enough to uphold broadcasting standards after a series of investigations involving GB News.

Ms Slade highlighted previous Ofcom findings against the channel, concerns raised by media experts and former regulators, and questioned whether current enforcement measures are acting as a meaningful deterrent.

The MP asked whether the regulator is failing to enforce its own Broadcasting Code and highlighted the continued role of Nigel Farage MP as a presenter on the channel.
 

During the debate, she said:

“Today, the Member for Clacton, who has been notified that I intend to refer to him, is advertised by GB News on their website as a presenter, offering viewers the latest news, opinion and analysis.

“The Member for Clacton is also a shareholder in the channel and has received significant payments from it. It's all in the public domain. Even the channel's founder chairman, Andrew Neil, has publicly questioned why Ofcom permits the arrangement.”

She also noted that Ofcom had previously concluded that politicians presenting news programmes risk undermining the integrity and credibility of broadcast news, and questioned whether sitting MPs and political party leaders should be permitted to present news and current affairs programmes at all.

She added that repeated concerns about broadcasting standards raise questions about whether Ofcom's interventions are having the desired effect, and challenged ministers to examine whether the current regulatory framework remains fit for purpose.

The debate also focused on Royal Mail, where Ms Slade shared constituents' experiences of long delays followed by large quantities of mail arriving all at once.

She told Parliament:

"My residents tell me time and again about the length of time between deliveries and then, miraculously, when someone challenges missing post, bundles turn up in elastic bands. It simply isn't credible that all of that post happened to arrive on that very day."

Ms Slade questioned whether Royal Mail is providing Ofcom with full information about missed deliveries and operational failures, and argued that customers deserve greater transparency and accountability when services fail.

She also noted that Ofcom is now being handed significant new responsibilities in areas such as online safety, despite ongoing concerns about its performance in existing areas of responsibility.

Drawing together concerns about broadcasting standards, scam calls, broadband connectivity and postal deliveries, Ms Slade urged ministers to undertake a formal review of Ofcom's powers, duties and enforcement framework. 

She concluded:

"If consumers cannot rely on the regulator to challenge broadcasters, tackle scams, secure connectivity or hold Royal Mail to account, then it is not enough to ask whether Ofcom is doing its job. Parliament must also ask whether we have given it the tools to do it."

ENDS