Industry figureheads celebrated the thought of this remit being protected.
John McVay, chief executive of producer trade group Pact, said he was very pleased by the decision.
The government has made the right decision to hit the stop button on Channel 4 privatisation.
‘Derry Girls’ is one of Channel 4’s best-loved showsHat Trick/Channel 4
It was always a solution in search of a problem that didnt exist, he said.
Channel 4 has a unique position in the broadcasting ecosystem.
Moving to private ownership would have endangered this.
‘Help’
Sarah Dollard, theDoctor WhoandBridgertonwriter, summed up the mood more succinctly.
Thank f**k for that,she tweeted.
What a huge waste of time the whole exercise was.
A low point in the culture wars that hopefully doesnt need to be repeated.
This is a bittersweet moment, said the person with knowledge of the talks.
Privatization would have been a disaster for everyone, but now the battle is to protect the indie sector.
We will get in the room with the government to secure the best possible deal.
Other producers echoed this sentiment.
Independent production companies must be protected at all costs, said Fulwells Pearlman.
Previous Growth Fund companies include Eleven, which makes Netflix hitSex Education.
Channel 4 declined to comment on the leaked government email about privatisation.
Alex Mahon, the broadcasters chief executive, told staff to keep quiet until an announcement has been made.
A government spokesman said: We do not comment on speculation.
We will announce more on our plans in due course.
