BBC put contract to provide weather forecast out to tender for first time

The Met Office risks losing its lucrative deal to provide weather forecasts to the BBC after the corporation decided to put the contract out for tender for what is believed to be the first time since 1923, it emerged today.

The decision to invite rival forecasters to bid for the contract comes during a difficult spell for the Met Office, which is under fire following a series of botched predictions. The service's long-range forecast was of an "odds-on barbecue summer", which ended up sodden. Last week it failed to anticipate heavy snowfall in the south-east that brought traffic to a standstill. While it issued a forecast in autumn proclaiming that this winter would be mild, with the chances of a cold winter less than 15%, rival forecasters correctly predicted colder than normal weather. The Met Office, which is owned by the Ministry of Defence, has held the contract to provide the BBC's weather since the service began broadcasting, a BBC spokesman said.

"We have always worked with the Met Office - in 1923 they started doing radio broadcasts for us," he said.

All 24 of the BBC's weather presenters are trained meteorologists provided by the Met Office. Their jobs could be in jeopardy if the contract is awarded to a rival forecaster, as well as those of a number of other Met Office employees dedicated to the BBC service. The Sunday Times reported yesterday that the Met Office contract with the BBC expires in April and the broadcaster has begun talks with Metra, the national forecaster for New Zealand, as a possible alternative. The BBC put the contract out to tender to ensure "best value for money", but its timing coincides with a storm over the Met Office's accuracy.

Metra already produces graphics for the BBC, including the 3D map that made some viewers feel sick when it was introduced in 2005. Weather Commerce, Metra's UK subsidiary, has usurped the Met Office in supplying forecasts to Tesco, Sainsbury's, Marks & Spencer and Waitrose. Retailers use forecasts to make sales predictions and for weather-related distribution issues.

Employees at Weather Commerce were under instruction not to speak to the media, but a source close to Metra told the Sunday Times: "The BBC is not happy with the service it has been getting from the Met Office; it thinks it's too expensive. We can provide a bespoke service that will undercut it. Because we already produce the graphics we've got a foot in the door, so we're optimistic."

The BBC would not confirm why they had decided to put the contract out to tender, nor whether they had invited other forecasters to bid in the past.

In a statement, the corporation said: "The contract for the supply of the weather services to the BBC expires this year and we are considering various options relating to provision of these services. It is common practice to look at the options … to ensure we get best value for money."

A spokesman for the Met Office said: "There has been renegotiation regularly. But whether it has been done as a competitive tender [before], I'm not sure."

Asked how confident the Met Office was that the contract would be renewed, another spokesman said: "We hope we can continue the successful relationship."