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New culture secretary attacks pay of BBC foreign editors New culture secretary attacks pay of BBC foreign editors
(about 5 hours later)
Matt Hancock, the new culture secretary, has criticised the BBC for paying some of its international journalists more than the British ambassadors in the same country.Matt Hancock, the new culture secretary, has criticised the BBC for paying some of its international journalists more than the British ambassadors in the same country.
Hancock said the BBC should not just respond to allegations of pay inequality by increasing the pay of women but also consider the pay of men “who are paid far more than equivalent public servants”.Hancock said the BBC should not just respond to allegations of pay inequality by increasing the pay of women but also consider the pay of men “who are paid far more than equivalent public servants”.
Hancock, who was announced as Karen Bradley’s successor on Monday, said the BBC needed to do “much more” to ensure than men and women were being paid the same for work and that it should be a “beacon for the British values of fairness”. Hancock, who was announced as Karen Bradley’s successor on Monday, said the BBC needed to do much more to ensure that men and women were being paid the same for work and that it should be a “beacon for the British values of fairness”.
Hancock was responding to an urgent question in Commons about the resignation of Carrie Gracie as the BBC’s China editor. In an open letter Gracie accused the BBC of having a “secretive and illegal” pay culture and said she was paid far less than the BBC’s two male international editors – Jon Sopel in North America and Jeremy Bowen in the Middle East. Hancock was responding to an urgent question in the Commons about the resignation of Carrie Gracie as the BBC’s China editor. In an open letter Gracie accused the BBC of having a “secretive and illegal” pay culture and said she was paid far less than the BBC’s two male international editors – Jon Sopel in North America and Jeremy Bowen in the Middle East.
Sopel was paid between £200,000 to £249,999 last year while Sir Kim Darroch, the British ambassador to the United States, collected £180,000 to £185,000. 1. Chris Evans £2.2m - £2.25m
2. Gary Lineker £1.75m - £1.8m
3. Graham Norton £850,0000 - £899,999
4. Jeremy Vine £700,000 - £749,999
5. John Humphrys £600,000 - £649,999
6. Huw Edwards £550,000 - £599,999
7. Steve Wright £500,000 - £549,999
= 8. Claudia Winkleman £450,000 - £499,999
= 8. Matt Baker £450,000 - £499,999
= 9. Nicky Campbell £400,000 - £449,999
= 9. Andrew Marr £400,000 - £449,999
= 9. Stephen Nolan £400,000 - £449,999
= 9. Alan Shearer £400,000 - £449,999
=9. Alex Jones £400,000 - £449,000
10. Fiona Bruce £350,000 - £399,999
Sopel was paid between £200,000 and £249,999 last year while Sir Kim Darroch, the British ambassador to the United States, collected £180,000 to £185,000.
Hancock said: “This isn’t just a matter of levelling women’s pay up – it is a matter of pay equality. Working for the BBC is public service and a great privilege, yet some men at the BBC are paid far more than equivalent public servants.Hancock said: “This isn’t just a matter of levelling women’s pay up – it is a matter of pay equality. Working for the BBC is public service and a great privilege, yet some men at the BBC are paid far more than equivalent public servants.
“The BBC have begun to act, and I welcome that, but more action, much more action, is needed – especially when the BBC foreign editors can earn more than Her Majesty’s ambassadors in the same jurisdiction“The BBC have begun to act, and I welcome that, but more action, much more action, is needed – especially when the BBC foreign editors can earn more than Her Majesty’s ambassadors in the same jurisdiction
“The director-general has commendably committed to sorting this issue out by 2020 and we will hold him to that. I understand their report on on-air presenter salaries will be published in the next few weeks.“The director-general has commendably committed to sorting this issue out by 2020 and we will hold him to that. I understand their report on on-air presenter salaries will be published in the next few weeks.
“But we expect the BBC to observe pay restraint and deliver value for money for licence fee payers. We will watch closely. The BBC must act because the brilliant women working at all levels of the BBC deserve better.”“But we expect the BBC to observe pay restraint and deliver value for money for licence fee payers. We will watch closely. The BBC must act because the brilliant women working at all levels of the BBC deserve better.”
His comments are the latest stage of a worsening pay row for the BBC. On Tuesday it was also revealed that Gracie would appear in front of the parliamentary DCMS committee to discuss pay inequality at the BBC and that Tony Hall, the director-general, had also been invited. His comments are the latest stage of a worsening pay row at the BBC. On Tuesday it was also announced that Gracie would appear in front of the parliamentary DCMS committee to discuss pay inequality at the BBC and that Tony Hall, the director-general, had also been invited.
The Equalities and Human Rights Commission has said it would write to the BBC to seek answers about allegations of pay discrimination following the resignation of Gracie. Later on Tuesday Gracie said she had been informed her salary as a returning presenter on the BBC News channel would be £145,000 – £10,000 more than she earned as China editor. She tweeted:
The EHRC has the power to bring legal action, as well as naming-and-shaming organisations about inequality and discrimination. Its intervention into the pay row is embarrassing for the BBC. #bbcwomen BBC bosses say my salary from 29th Jan back on News Channel will be 145K. Say #EqualPay. Will be paid more for sitting in warm studio than hurtling round country of 1.4 billion 24/7. Strange.
An EHRC spokespersonsaid: “We are aware of claims by Carrie Gracie of unlawful pay discrimination at the BBC. Women have a legal right to equal pay with men for equal work. The BBC faced further claims of censorship after the scheduled presenter of the Radio 4 programme You and Yours, Winifred Robinson, was taken off air for posting on Twitter her support for Gracie and the campaign for equal pay at the broadcaster.
“We will be writing to the BBC and requiring them to provide us with information on their pay policy and the facts in this individual case. We will consider whether further action is required based on this information.” Tuesday’s episode of You and Yours was due to focus on the issue of gender pay and was instead presented by Shari Vahl.
The BBC is also facing the prospect of lawsuits from female employees. Jennifer Millins, employment partner at Mishcon de Reya, is advising more than 10 senior women at the BBC, including Gracie, while a collective grievance has been lodged on behalf of 121 women by the National Union of Journalists. Robinson had tweeted that Gracie was a “superb journalist, great China editor” and added: “What a mess to lose her from that post.”
Millins said: “They don’t feel their complaints are being dealt with in a meaningful way. The process has taken a very long time. If the BBC does not resolve this internally, then individuals will be forced to sue.” Superb journalist, great China Editor. What a mess to lose her from that post. @BBCCarrie #equalpay #istandwithcarrie
In response to the EHRC’s intervention, a BBC spokesperson said: “The BBC was one of the first to publish a gender pay report showing we are significantly better than national average. We have already published an independent judge-led equal pay report for rank-and-file staff, which showed no systemic discrimination. BBC management has asked the editors of programmes to enforce its editorial guidelines on impartiality by stopping journalists reporting on the pay story if they have supported Gracie or campaigned for pay equality at the organisation.
“Also a PwC-led report on presenter pay will be published shortly and people will be able to make informed judgments on that report and how we act on it.” However, some insiders are uncomfortable with the move given that dozens of the biggest names at the BBC, including the Today presenter Mishal Husain and the Newsnight host Evan Davis, backed Gracie on social media after her letter was published. Many used the hashtag #istandwithcarrie.
The BBC is also facing a potential discrimination investigation by the Equalities and Human Rights Commission after the watchdog said it would write to the BBC to seek answers about allegations of pay discrimination following the resignation of Gracie.
The EHRC has the power to bring legal action against organisations over inequality and discrimination. Its intervention into the pay row is embarrassing for the BBC.
The reason the BBC was told to publish the list of top earners was to demonstrate whether it is delivering value for money - in other words, whether it pays in line with the market. Given that no other broadcaster publishes the pay of its stars this is difficult to prove, but Tony Hall, the director general, insists the BBC aims to pay people at a discount to the market while Gary Lineker, one of the top earners, insists he has been offered more lucrative deals to leave. One publicly available pay deal is for Paul Dacre, the editor of the Daily Mail, who gets £1.5m a year - which would put him second on the BBC’s list behind Chris Evans. 
The BBC is already facing the prospect of legal action from female employees. Jennifer Millins, an employment partner at Mishcon de Reya, is advising more than 10 senior women at the BBC, including Gracie, while a collective grievance has been lodged on behalf of 121 women by the National Union of Journalists.
In response to Hancock’s comments, a BBC spokesperson said: “We have great respect for the diplomatic service, but the BBC is an international broadcaster and while we can’t match the salaries offered by some of our rivals, it is media companies we have to compete against for talent.”
Fran Unsworth, the recently appointed BBC director of news and current affairs, responded to the controversy around Gracie’s accusations by sending an email to news staff at the corporation explaining a report on presenter pay would probably be published at the end of the month.
She said: “BBC pay equality is vital. This issue has been the subject of a lot of debate, both on the BBC and elsewhere, over the past 24 hours. I want to thank news staff for covering this topic with such integrity.
“Pay is an issue that we need to resolve swiftly and get right. This is a priority not just for me but for the entire BBC.”