THE BBC has said it may “consult” the UK Government on which city gets to host next year’s Eurovision Song Contest – which would give Culture Secretary Nadine Dorries a say in the process.
As the representative for the Culture Department Dorries, who recently appeared to forget that Glasgow hosted the Commonwealth Games, may be asked for her views on which area gets to put on the major event.
However, the broadcaster insists that the “final decision” will be its own, in conjunction with the European Broadcasting Union which is organising the event.
It was previously decided that Ukraine, despite being the winners of the last contest, could not host the next tournament due to the ongoing conflict.
On Thursday the BBC confirmed the new process to decide which UK city will host the international event.
Once all the applications have been received a process will take place whereby cities will be shortlisted “based on their ability to meet the requirements and their responses around capability and experience”.
Detailing the requirements the host city must meet in order to be considered, the BBC said: “The final decision on selecting the host city will be based on a city or region’s capacity and capability in meeting the BBC’s and the EBU’s requirements, as well as availability of resources and general experience in hosting a large and complex event such as the Eurovision Song Contest.
“For example, last year the EBU’s host city criteria was based on providing a venue able to accommodate at least 10,000 spectators (as well as a press centre), that should be within easy reach of an international airport and with ample hotel accommodation.”
In the FAQ, the broadcaster also said it may “consult” the UK Government on the decision, but the host city will ultimately be decided upon by the BBC and the EBU.
Aberdeen, Glasgow, Leeds, London, Manchester and Sheffield are among the UK cities to have entered bids to host Eurovision.
After initially bidding to host the event, Cardiff withdrew its request as Cardiff Council, the Welsh Government and the Principality Stadium released a joint statement announcing they had been exploring the viability of bringing the song contest to Wales’s capital city, but will not proceed due to the “complexity of staging the event”.
The host city is expected to be announced by the autumn.
Glasgow has for a while been the favourite to host the event but, according to the latest odds on Betfair, Birmingham has now moved to the top with odds of 6/4 compared to Glasgow's 2/1.
