The BBC’s director general has called for an expansion in the local democracy reporting service to encompass other public bodies including health authorities and regonal mayors.

Tim Davie, pictured, said he wanted to write “a new chapter” in the corporation’s relationship with the wider local news sector.

Central to this would be an expansion in the BBC-funded LDRS to include coverage of health authorities, police and crime commissioners and regional mayors as well as local councils.

He was speaking at the Lowry Theatre in Salford on future plans for the BBC in the run-up to charter renewal in 2027.

Mr Davie said: “Trusted local news is at the heart of the challenge to foster social capital. I am so lucky to see the critical value of these local services as I travel across the UK visiting BBC offices and local partners. It is frankly inspiring.

“Our ambition is to strengthen our local journalism while building support for the wider local news ecology which faces serious pressure.

“We want to write a new chapter in our partnership with the wider local news sector.

“The BBC helped bolster local news through our Local Democracy Reporting Service. As a next step, we want to expand LDRS from its current focus on local authority reporting to include health authorities, police and crime commissioners, and deep analysis of the work of regional mayors. All available to partners.

“But we can be more radical in supporting others. Can we ‘open source’ all our local video, news and audio content to enable local media partners to access it too? Can we use the scale and reach of the BBC’s platforms to provide more prominent linking to commercial providers?

“Of course, we’ll consult with partners before we confirm plans but we need a plural local news market.”

Responding to the speech, News Media Association chief executive Owen Meredith said: “We welcome Tim Davie’s recognition and aim to strengthen our plural local news market.

“As Ofcom has said, the BBC’s increased online local news output is one of the headwinds to the success of local news media, so the BBC’s desire to reset the relationship and be a truly beneficial partner is welcome.

“We will work with the BBC and government in the lead up to Charter Renewal to get the right framework for a BBC that is truly complementary to commercial providers.

“This work will include looking at ways to enhance the successful Local Democracy Reporting Service and improving linking to commercial news providers.”