BBC President Richard Sharp announced his resignation on Friday April 28, swept away by a conflict of interest case surrounding his appointment as head of the British public audiovisual group. A report released the same day concluded that he had violated rules on public appointments.
Former banker, formerly boss of current Prime Minister Rishi Sunak when he was at Goldman Sachs, Richard Sharp, 67, was appointed in 2021. And this, shortly after playing matchmaker to help Boris Johnson, then Prime Minister, to obtain a loan of 800,000 pounds sterling (906,000 euros). As is customary, it was on the recommendation of the head of the British government that the president of the BBC was chosen.
The report on Friday concluded that by failing to declare his role in securing Boris Johnson’s loan guarantee, Richard Sharp risked giving the impression that he was not independent of the then Prime Minister. He also believes that he risked giving the impression of influencing Boris Johnson to obtain his support, by warning him of his candidacy for the presidency of the BBC before formally submitting it.
An institution in turmoil
The report “finds that I have violated the code of governance for public appointments”but that this violation “does not necessarily invalidate the nomination”, explains Richard Sharp in a press release announcing his resignation. Invoking a violation ” inadvertently “Richard Sharp argues that he wants to put first “the interests of the BBC”believing that this case could represent a ” distraction “ related to ” well done “ of the British audiovisual giant. His resignation will be effective at the end of June.
In a letter to Richard Sharp, Culture Minister Lucy Frazer said “understand and respect” his decision, thanking him for his work as BBC chairman. Amid heated controversy after he was suspended for comparing government rhetoric to that of 1930s Nazi Germany, presenter Gary Lineker said the BBC chairman should never be chosen by the government. “Not now or never”he tweeted.
This essential institution of the British audiovisual landscape celebrated its centenary in the fall in full doubt, tormented by competition from pay platforms and the threats hanging over its public funding. The BBC has also come under fire in recent years from the ruling Conservatives, accusing it of biased coverage, including on Brexit, and of being focused on the concerns of urban elites rather than the working classes.
The government, then led by Boris Johnson, froze the fee at the start of 2022 for two years (159 pounds, or 180 euros per year), while inflation is putting household finances to the test. He also mentioned his eventual removal, a controversial threat even in the conservative ranks.
Under budgetary pressure, the group announced in May a plan to make 500 million pounds (586 million euros) in savings per year. A thousand jobs (out of a total of about 22,000 employees) are cut, channels are merged and others go exclusively online.
