Labour peer expected to head up Ofcom

Labour peer Lord Currie of Marylebone is expected to be appointed chairman of the new communications super-regulator Ofcom later today, one of the most powerful posts in the British media. The new government body brings together five existing regulatory body including the ITC, OfTel and the Radio Authority, and will have controlling powers over the BBC, the ITV companies and BskyB, as well as telecoms giants like BT. The role is likely to be one of the most politically loaded of any regulator given the cultural sensitivity of the media and the government's ambitions for digital broadcasting in the UK. Some feel his appointment is likely to lead to accusations of cronyism from critics who say too many government-appointed broadcasting jobs are held by Labour sympathisers. Gavyn Davies, chairman of the BBC, and his director general, Greg Dyke, are both Labour supporters.