Former head of Sky News John Ryley has called for colleagues to be tougher on the royal family and end their obsession with Westminster gossip.

He also warned that advertisers boycotting GB News represent a threat to democracy and said minority political parties should be dropped from televised general election leadership debates.

Delivering the RTS/Media Society Steve Hewlett lecture alongside BBC correspondents Lyse Doucet and Steve Rosenberg on Thursday, he warned that UK news broadcasters have become “supine”, “incurious” and “compliant” when it comes to reporting on the royal family.