ITV targets £40m saving in regional news

LONDON - ITV is planning to cut around £40m a year from its costs by reducing its 17 regional newsrooms to nine through mergers, but must get the permission of media regulator Ofcom.

The changes would entail its currently distinct West and West Country bulletins merged into one. The same would happen to the Border and Tyne Tees regions, the East and West Midlands, and the Meridian and Thames Valley regions.

In addition, a number of local services would be cut. The cuts would save almost half of ITV's £85m regional news budget.

If Ofcom approves the plans, the changes will take place in 2009 in the run-up to digital switchover in 2012.

The cuts are part of ITV executive chairman Michael Grade's strategy for the next five years, announced earlier today. Grade said he wanted to improve ITV's content but needed to fund the investment by keeping control of costs.

The National Union of Journalists and broadcast union Bectu have opposed the cuts, saying hundreds of the 1,045 people currently employed by ITV News could lose their jobs.

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