Ofcom said it revoked Russia Today (RT’s) licence to broadcast in the UK with immediate effect.
The British communications regulator said in a statement it doesn’t consider the licensee, ANO TV Novosti, “fit and proper to hold a UK broadcast licence”.
It said it is currently involved in 29 investigations over the impartiality of RT’s news and current affairs coverage of the war in Ukraine.
Ofcom adds it considers the “volume and potentially serious nature of the issues raised within such a short period to be of great concern.”
Given this, the regulator said it launched a separate investigation to determine whether the licensee should retain its licence.
It considered several factors, such as its relationship with the Russian Federation, which funds the broadcaster.
New laws in Russia over the last few weeks also “effectively criminalise and independent journalism” that goes against the views of Russian state news.
Ofcom added that these constraints make it impossible for RT to adhere to impartiality rules in its broadcasting code.
It also notes the importance of broadcaster’s rights to freedom of expression, and the audience’s right to receive information.
However, this can’t come at the cost of public confidence in the country’s broadcasting regulatory regime.
“Following an independent regulatory process, we have today found that RT is not fit and proper to hold a licence in the UK. As a result we have revoked RT’s UK broadcasting licence,” said chief executive Dame Melanie Dawes.
RT has previous history with compliance, having been fined £200,000 due to impartiality breaches.