Ofcom has today imposed a £100,000 financial penalty on GB News for breaking due impartiality rules.
Ofcom’s earlier investigation found that an appropriately wide range of significant viewpoints was not presented and given due weight in People’s Forum: The Prime Minister – a live, hour-long current affairs programme broadcast on 12 February 2024 - nor was due impartiality preserved through clearly linked and timely programmes.
As a result, we concluded that the then Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak, had a mostly uncontested platform to promote the policies and performance of his Government in a period preceding a UK General Election, in breach of Rules 5.11 and 5.12 of the Broadcasting Code.
Given the seriousness and repeated nature of this breach, Ofcom has imposed a financial penalty of £100,000 on GB News Limited. We have also directed GB News to broadcast a statement of our findings against it, on a date and in a form determined by us.
GB News is challenging our original breach decision in this case by judicial review, which we are defending. Ofcom will not enforce this sanction decision until those proceedings are concluded.