Patten steps down as BBC Trust chairman

LORD PATTEN of Barnes has stepped down as chairman of the BBC Trust following major heart surgery, writes James Macintyre.

Lord (Chris) Patten, the last governor of Hong Kong and a former Conservative Party chairman, said it would not be fair to his family to continue in the BBC role, which he has held since 2011. He will temporarily be replaced by the trust’s vice chairman, Diane Coyle, until a new appointment is made.

Lord Patten is a trustee of The Tablet and one of the country’s most senior Catholics. He was appointed by the Prime Minister, David Cameron, to oversee the papal visit of Benedict XVI in 2010, and attended the Consistory Mass that saw Pope Francis make Vincent Nichols a cardinal in February. The peer, who is also chancellor of Oxford University, said: “On the advice of my doctors … and having consulted my family and friends, I have concluded that I cannot continue to work at the same full pace as I have done to date. On this basis I have decided with great regret to step down from much the most demanding of my roles – that of chairman of the BBC.”