Three years into the newly relaunched station the station was given an additional three years to prove itself to its audience by senior BBC management or close for good: this threat was also applied to its other metropolitan BBC Local Radio stations BBC WM in Birmingham and Manchester's BBC GMR. The threat was lifted after the BBC deemed it sufficiently patronised to remain on-air, however, criticism of the station grew from its Radio London days, causing then Minister for Broadcasting David Mellor to remark: "The BBC must think hard whether it is occupying radio frequencies without making much use of them." This claim was rejected by senior management.