Leave her to it
In 1966 the Government requested that the Minister of Technology (who was also the former Postmaster-General) travelled to Sweden, to investigate the new phenomenon of an all-music radio station. This investigation would form part of the preparation for the launch of Radio 1, originally established in response to pirate stations and now often regarded as the flagship of the Corporation’s radio output. Upon his return from studying this new broadcasting format, Mr Wedgwood Benn was quoted by the Daily Mail as say that it “would seem to be the answer, although it is not for the Government to tell the BBC how to run its own house.”
This remark seems poignant not only in the aftermath of The Hutton “Inquiry” but also by the fact that it was made by the man we know as Tony Benn, who famously spoke out against the invasion of Iraq.