BBC News is to cut coverage of crime stories as part of its cost-saving plans. Up to 490 jobs are to go in the department as the television, radio and on-line operations are integrated, with £155 million due to be saved during the next five years.

Morale within the BBC is said to be at an all-time low after Mark Thompson, the Director-General, announced last week that 2,500 jobs would be lost across the corporation.

Helen Boaden, the director of BBC News, admitted that staff were “unhappy and anxious about some of the efficiencies we are having to make”. Explaining where the cuts would fall, she said: “We are talking about deploying fewer stories. For instance, I think there’s some middle-ranking crime stories we could do without or think harder about the way we do them.”

A spokesman said that BBC News would continue to cover important stories. “The BBC will be focusing on the big, important stories that matter to all people. If major crime stories continue to feature in the news agenda, we’ll duly report them,” he said.

The BBC has postponed plans to send out voluntary redundancy letters pending talks with the unions on issues including redeployment. If a framework agreement is not reached by November 5, unions will begin a strike ballot. Strike action could cause huge disruption to the BBC’s most popular shows. John Humphrys and Jeremy Paxton are among BBC journalists who have publicly criticised the cuts.

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