In a speech this morning he made his case for how important the BBC is as a public service and pointed out that talent and quality services ‘don't come cheap'.
He said: ‘Public expectations about openness, trustworthiness and every kind of value for money are becoming more trenchant, more insistent and more vocal than ever before.'
Records of expenses for the past five years of BBC board members are due to be released today. Sharon Baylay, director of marketing communications and audiences, will be among those to have expenses revealed.
Thompson spoke out yesterday about proposals in the government's recent digital Britain report, which suggested the licence fee could be top sliced to become a contestable fund for non-BBC public service content. He accused individuals in the government and Ofcom of plotting to undermine the corporation's funding.
Today he said: ‘If you want Premiership highlights on BBC Television or the best DJs on the radio in the morning, you can't wish the market away altogether.'
Channel 4 chief executive Andy Duncan has made it clear he would like to form a partnership with BBC Worldwide, the commercial arm of the BBC, in order to ease Channel 4's funding problems.
Lord Stephen Carter, who wrote the digital Britain report, has said any merger would not be a ‘forced marriage' and called on the broadcasters to come to a decision themselves.
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