Gary Lineker: Impartiality row leads to fresh calls for BBC chairman to resign

Pressure is mounting on BBC chairman Richard Sharp to step down amid rows over Gary Lineker’s impartiality.

Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey said the moderator’s suspension “showed a failure at the top”.

Mr Sharp’s appointment is under investigation because of his relationship with Boris Johnson. He denies wrongdoing.

But ex-BBC boss Greg Dyke said Sharp’s allegations “helped to fuel perceptions” that the company was bowing to government pressure on Lineker.

In the wake of another impartiality dispute involving the host of the game of the day, new questions are being asked about Mr Sharp’s position.

Mr Sharp has been criticized for his role in providing an £800,000 loan to then-Prime Minister Boris Johnson.

A panel of MPs said Mr Sharp made “significant errors of judgment” when applying for the BBC job. He insists he got the job on merit.

Mr Sharp has previously admitted the affair embarrassed the BBC but insisted he “acted in good faith to ensure the rules were followed”.

Lineker’s suspension over his criticism of the language used in the government’s asylum policy and comparing her rhetoric to Nazi Germany sparked a spontaneous strike by BBC Sport staff that has taken TV and radio coverage off the air.

Lib Dem leader Sir Ed said the government had “systematically attacked and undermined the independence of our BBC” and that the chairman’s position was “completely untenable”.

“We need leadership at the BBC that upholds our proud British values ​​and can withstand today’s ever-turbulent politics and Conservative bullying tactics,” he added.

Mr Dyke, who ran the BBC between 2000 and 2004, said Lineker’s suspension was a “mistake” and “undermined his own credibility”.

The decision to suspend Lineker was signed by Director General Tim Davie who, unlike Mr Sharp, is not appointed by the government.

Mr Sharp has previously accepted that he arranged a meeting between the Cabinet Office and Sam Blyth, a Canadian multi-millionaire and distant cousin of Mr Johnson, who had offered to help him financially.

Cabinet Secretary Simon Case instructed Mr Sharp not to be further involved in loan talks as it could raise conflicts of interest given his BBC application.

Mr Sharp, who has insisted he got the job on merit, did not disclose his involvement in organizing the meeting when checked ahead of his appointment.

The process is being investigated by the Public Appointments Officer and the BBC board has said it will review its conflicts of interest without giving a timeline for completion.

BBC culture and media editor Katie Razzall points out that the organization has no say in appointing the chair and that, as a board member, Mr Sharp has no say in editorial matters.

Mr Sharp was named the Government’s preferred candidate for the BBC Chair in January 2021 and at the time the Commons Committee on Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) backed his appointment.

The choice of government is ultimately decided by the Prime Minister, on the advice of the Minister for Culture, who in turn is advised by a panel.

The Chair is responsible for upholding and protecting the BBC’s independence and ensuring that the BBC fulfills its mission, among other things, to inform, educate and entertain.

As he is appointed by the government, Mr Sharp can only be dismissed or resigned by the Foreign Secretary, he cannot be removed from the BBC.

Prof Steven Barnett, a professor of communications at the University of Westminster, told BBC News he had supported Mr Sharp’s appointment but now thinks he should go.

“It is clear that there is now a big question mark over the BBC’s overall performance and commitment to impartiality,” he says.

“His own position makes solving this problem almost impossible. When he can go and things settle down a bit, there can be a calm discussion about how these social media rules apply and who they apply to.”

Downing Street previously said it was reserving a verdict on Mr Sharp’s appointment pending the investigation.