World Service An arm of soft power that UK can barely afford to lose

Hours before the chancellor, Rachel Reeves, delivered her budget last year, government officials were still in tense negotiations with BBC bosses over how much the World Service would be given.

- By Kiran Stacey, Michael Savage and Heather Stewart

The amount they were haggling over was relatively small - just £5.5m ($7.5m) out of a total budget of £400m. But BBC chiefs warned the government that if the cuts were imposed on them, they would have to close several language stations in parts of the world where the Russians already hold influence.

The BBC got the extra cash it was asking for. But ahead of this week’s spending review, executives at the corporation feared their appeal to Britain’s soft power might not prove so effective, especially after recent cuts to the aid budget.

The Guardian recently revealed the government had asked the World Service to model two scenarios: one where their funding remains the same in cash terms; and one where it would be cut by 2% each year in cash terms. Each scenario would see the budget fall behind inflation, and could mean it ends up to £70m short of what its bosses believe it needs.

The service is just one institution promoting Britain’s soft power abroad, but it is arguably the most powerful, reaching 450 million people a week, according to the broadcaster's own figures.