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GB News faces ‘significant’ fine after losing High Court battle over Ofcom sanctions

October 5, 2024

GB News is facing a substantial fine for breaching Ofcom’s impartiality rules after losing a High Court bid to block sanctions from the media regulator.

A judge rejected the news channel’s request to pause Ofcom’s sanctions process, allowing the regulator to move forward with its planned penalties, including a potentially significant fine.

The controversy stems from a live debate programme featuring former Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, which aired in February. Ofcom received over 500 complaints, ruling that GB News had breached impartiality rules by failing to provide balanced perspectives during the broadcast. The regulator argued that the channel did not offer equal weight to opposing viewpoints, either in the debate itself or in a related programme.

GB News had sought an injunction to prevent Ofcom from publishing details of the sanctions, claiming that doing so would cause “irreparable damage” to the channel’s reputation. However, Mr Justice Chamberlain dismissed the argument, stating that the public interest in completing the process outweighed the potential harm to the broadcaster. The judge emphasised the importance of Ofcom’s regulatory role in maintaining public confidence and ensuring compliance among broadcasters.

Ofcom has provisionally decided to impose a significant statutory fine on GB News, with the final decision expected soon. However, the court has allowed GB News to pursue a judicial review of the breach decision, which could challenge the regulator’s findings.

This case marks a pivotal moment for GB News, which has already been found in breach of Ofcom’s broadcasting rules a dozen times, including issues related to impartiality and the use of politicians as presenters. The channel has faced scrutiny for employing figures like Jacob Rees-Mogg as hosts, with two episodes of his programme recently ruled to have violated regulations barring politicians from acting as newsreaders.

Ofcom welcomed the court’s decision to allow the sanctions process to proceed, stating that it reflected the public interest in upholding broadcasting standards. GB News’s chief executive, Angelos Frangopoulos, expressed satisfaction that the court granted permission to challenge Ofcom’s decisions, stating that the broadcaster believes some of the regulator’s rulings have been “neither fair nor lawful.”

The final outcome of this case will likely set a precedent for future regulatory actions involving political content on UK news channels, as GB News continues to navigate its controversial approach to broadcasting.