BBC head, Mark Thompson, today refused to give a guarantee of BBC funding for S4C after 2015 when questioned by members of Cymdeithas yr Iaith Gymraeg (The Welsh Language Society) in Cardiff.Mark Thompson, Director General of the BBC, was quizzed by members of the society as he arrived to attend an lunchtime event hosted by the BBC for politicians and other stakeholders in the pricey Woods Brasserie, Cardiff Bay at lunchtime today.During a long conversation with members of Cymdeithas yr Iaith Gymraeg, Mark Thompson repeatedly refused to give any guarantees regarding BBC funding for S4C after 2015.When asked if he could guarantee funding, Mark Thompson said: "As I say, as I say, I'm not either guaranteeing or not guaranteeing..."*Menna Machreth, Cymdeithas yr Iaith's broadcasting spokesperson, said:"Mark Thompson was repeatedly asked by our members whether he could give a guarantee of funding for S4C after 2015 when the agreement between the London Government and the BBC in London to fund S4C runs out. He was unable to give any such guarantee. S4C faces real term cuts of over 40% to its funding, a BBC takeover and slash-and-burn powers in the hands of the Ministers in Westminster. It's clearer than ever that the BBC-Tory pact is going to kill off the channel unless something changes.""S4C must be taken out of the Public Bodies Bill. We as campaigners are calling for managerial independence and complete editorial independence without interference from the BBC or the Government. An independent funding formula for the Welsh language channel, based on inflation, is also essential to ensure fair funding to create Welsh language programmes of a high standard. We acknowledge that the channel could perform better - that's why we are campaigning for a new S4C, but that won't be possible under these plans."