The BBC is to cut over 415 jobs as part of cost-cutting plans. It will see the posts go from the news division, amid restructuring and digital investment.

The corporation says the move will save some stg£48 million (€60.6 mln) a year.

However the job loses are to be offset by an estimated 195 new roles - meaning a net reduction of around 220 posts.

The BBC says it will now begin consultation with staff and unions over these proposals.

The BBC's director of news and current affairs, James Harding, said "Taking nearly £50 million out of a well-run organisation that provides high quality news services that are trusted, relied upon and used by millions of people is an extremely difficult undertaking. The challenge is how to make BBC News even better, despite having less money".

"As well as setting out our savings plan this morning, we are also announcing proposals to restructure news and target investments in our future - in the digital transformation of BBC News, in our own original and distinctive journalism, in making this a better place to work".

The proposals include increased sharing of production teams and international programming across BBC platforms - leading to combining the BBC World Service and radio newsrooms, and combining production teams for various news programmes.

Newsgathering is also set to be reshaped "involving smaller and more agile reporting teams", the corporation says.

The budget for the BBC World Service is to be increased from stg£245 million (€309 mln) this year to around stg£250 million (€316 mln) by 2016/17.

Global News Limited - which runs the commercial BBC World News channel and bbc.com/news - is to make savings "to remain competitive in an increasingly complex commercial market" over the next two years.