C4 chief rules out 'oil and water' merger

CHANNEL 4 chief executive Andy Duncan today dismissed a merger with Channel Five saying it would be like "mixing oil and water".

The head of the cash-strapped broadcaster hit back at the idea put forward by BBC Director-General Mark Thompson, and made his final pitch for funding before a key government report into the future of British media.

Mr Duncan, 46, said: "It makes no sense whatsoever to imagine that merging a not-for-profit publicly owned broadcast business with a for-profit, privately owned broadcaster is going to solve the fundamental structural problems.

"Mixing oil and water doesn't work. It just makes a mess."

He has lobbied for a share of the BBC's licence fee or a deal with BBC Worldwide.