BBC Hereford and Worcester has defended its religious broadcasting policy after complaints over its plans to shelve regular service broadcasts from county churches .

Andy Pike, for the BBC, said their commitment 'has never been stronger'.

But Hereford's retiring bishop, the Rt Rev Bishop John Oliver, said: "These services are very important occasions. The people in the churches and our clergy are very glad to be involved with them and the people at home enjoy listening to them. It will be a great shame if they are lost."

In a letter to the BBC's national head of local programming, the diocese claimed the planned changes amounted to a reduction in the commitment to good quality religious broadcasting.

"People in small villages pay their licence fee in the same way that people living in Hereford do and people in those villages are entitled to engage with their local radio stations in the same way as everyone else," said the diocese director of communications, Anni Holden.

"This will prevent them from doing so in a serious way."

But the BBC's Andy Pike said there were no plans to change the quantity of religious output from BBC Radio Hereford and Worcester.

He said: "We are examining the style and content of faith broadcasting, including recorded local church services in both areas.

Finances

"BBC budgets, financed by the licence payer, are finite and the BBC constantly looks for ways to produce programmes more cost efficiently," added Mr Pike.

For these financial reasons the BBC would change its religious policy.

He admitted live broadcasts from Herefordshire churches would now be replaced by a weekly Sunday programme involving a clergyman speaking to the county as a whole.

But Mr Pike said: "The change in policy will not affect the number of hours dedicated to religious programmes and there will still be live broadcasts at Easter and Christmas."