BBC News presenters and political journalists, including Huw Edwards, Jeremy Paxman, Martha Kearney and Nick Robinson, have sent a letter to the National Union of Journalists expressing "serious concerns" with next week's planned strike during the Conservative party conference.
The letter warned that holding the 48-hour strike over proposed changes to the BBC pension scheme during the conference, including the day of prime minister David Cameron's speech, "risks looking unduly partisan – particularly when none of the other party conferences have been targeted".
There is widespread support for strike action across the NUJ and the other BBC unions, Bectu and Unite, and the corporation's star political journalists may be forced to cross picket lines if they feel compelled to work during the Tory conference.
"Impartiality is the watchword for the BBC's political coverage and we would not wish to give a misleading impression that this is no longer something we value highly," the letter added.
"This is no comment on the proposed retrospective changes to the pension scheme which have caused widespread anger in the BBC nor is there any disagreement with the principle of strike action. However, we are clear that the choice of strike dates is counterproductive."
The signatories, who also include Jon Sopel, Peter Allen, Emily Maitlis, Jim Naughtie, Carolyn Quinn, Michael Crick, Laura Kuenssberg and John Pienaar, said they had been unable to attend recent NUJ branch meetings about the proposed strike because of the Liberal Democrat and Labour conferences over the past fortnight and wanted "to make our position clear".
The letter prompted a furious response from Ian Pollock, chair of the NUJ's BBC London branch. He lambasted the unnamed source who told today's Daily Mail that senior presenters were uneasy about the planned strike action.
"Frankly, I do not take kindly to non-members trying to unpick democratically taken decisions of the NUJ with the aid of loathsome enemies in Fleet Street," Pollack said.
Pollock pointed out that of the 32 signatories, 11 "do not appear" to be members of the union. He also said it was wrong to claim the union is targeting the Conservative party because for ideological reasons.
"There is a simple fact that you appear to be overlooking: the other political conferences would have been targeted too but fell outside our scope because of the long-winded niceties of calling strikes," he added.
"Not one NUJ member anywhere, to my knowledge, has suggested we target the Tories 'because we don't like them'. They simply happen to be the first in line of any number of high profile broadcasting events."
He added: "If you have any better tactical suggestions for conducting the strikes then all NUJ representatives will be glad to hear them. But I have to tell you that taking Shaun the Sheep cartoons off air will not cut the mustard."
Pollock also said that the overwhelming majority of staff supported strike action. "Taken alongside the recent 9-1 vote for strikes it is clear where the concerns of the vast majority of NUJ members lie; with their pensions and not with any temporary inconvenience to their day-to-day broadcasting."
In another response, the NUJ's chapel representative for the BBC Millbank political centre said he would take the letter to a joint meeting of broadcasting union officials tomorrow to discuss the proposed strike action, which is due to begin on Tuesday, 5 October. A second 48-hour strike is planned for 19 October, which would hit BBC coverage of chancellor George Osborne's spending review announcement.
However, the rep, Simon Vaughan, also warned that "this only seems to be a big issue at Millbank", pointing out that every other BBC NUJ chapel and the other broadcasting unions had voted in favour of strike action. The Millbank chapel vote on the strike was tied, he said.
"This is an important battle and we have a very limited window in which to protect the pensions of everyone in the BBC, not just those select few lucky enough to count themselves among what you call the 'political staff'," Vaughan added.
"The UK's healthy media will ensure that the Conservatives' message gets out to people. But David Cameron will not step in to sort out the BBC pension robbery to thank you for your trouble. This is not a quid pro quo.
"I remain of the opinion that anyone who finds themselves at work on a strike day is making themselves complicit with the BBC's robbery of everyone else's pension. I only wish the BBC valued your impartiality, loyalty and diligence as highly as you do."
The NUJ president, Jeremy Dear, denied there was any political motivation behind the strike. "The selection of specific dates was not a political act. The dates were chosen by elected reps because they are major broadcast events and for no other reason," he said.
"Strike dates were set by joint union reps from across the BBC, representing the views of thousands of members. Since these dates were fixed, officials have held meetings at all major BBC sites. Hundreds of members have attended and endorsed the decision to take action on 5, 6 and 19 and 20 October if the BBC was not prepared to properly address their concerns."
Dear added that representatives from the NUJ and Bectu would meet tomorrow to "agree next steps", and discuss whether the strikes will go ahead. "This issue of strike dates will be openly debated at this meeting and a democratic agreement reached."
He said the unions were committed to reaching a negotiated settlement with the BBC over its planned changes to pension arrangements.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2010/se ... conference
Struggling to take that in at the mo, so I'll read it tomorrow... Did laugh at myself for nearly shortening the thread title to include 'ToryCon' - now that would be a collection of opinionated geeks
