National Pensioners Convention claims it has been unable to secure place on panel and plans direct action at show's venues
Pensioners are planning to protest outside a venue where the BBC's Question Time is being filmed as part of a campaign to secure an invite on to the flagship programme.
The National Pensioners Convention, which has 1.5 million members, has been unsuccessfully lobbying for one of its spokespeople to be included on the panel.
Members have decided to take direct action by protesting outside venues where the programme is being filmed, beginning with the University of Exeter in Devon, the venue for this week's show. They have vowed to follow the programme around the country and protest wherever it is filmed.
The NPC's general secretary, Dot Gibson, 76, said: "The first time we applied in 2010 we were told we weren't well known enough as an organisation.
"Then we were told our representatives wouldn't be able to cope with the lights and the stress of a live broadcast. It's ridiculous and condescending and smacks of ageism.
"We have accused the BBC of ageism in the past as it seems they don't want to acknowledge our existence or our right to a voice in society."
The NPC says inclusion on the programme will offer a valid perspective on the nature of public sector and pension cuts on the elderly. It also wishes to discuss the quality of care provided for old people, and where the cost of this should lie, and how changes to the retirement age are likely to impact on the rest of society.
Gibson pointed out that former panellists had included the leader of the British National Party, Nick Griffin, as well as sportspeople and showbusiness stars but refused to have the NPC on.
"There's simply a refusal to accept that there is a pensioner movement in this country and that we are officially represented," she added.
The BBC on Wednesday rejected accusations of ageism and insisted "all sections of society" are represented on the Question Time panel. The spokesman added: "Question Time prides itself on representing all sections of society. Both the Question Time panel and audience are chosen to reflect a wide range of demographics, which includes pensioners.
"Many of our panellists are over or close to the age of retirement, including 20 in the current series, as are members of the invited audience."
Responding to a claim that the panel had never included a genuine representative of elderly people, the spokesman said: "As a point of clarification, on October 15 2009, Dame Joan Bakewell was a panellist as an 'adviser to the government on the elderly' so the statement that there 'has never been a genuine representative of pensioners allowed to speak on their behalf on Question Time' is untrue.
"Political parties are the only organisations that have guaranteed representation on the Question Time panel. The selection of guests outside the political parties is usually based on topicality or direct involvement with an appropriate issue."
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Source: http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2011/may/25/question-time-pensioners-protest
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