BBC chair Richard Sharp offers no apology over Boris Johnson loan row

Published

2 years ago

February 7, 2023

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BBC chairman Richard Sharp has offered no apology for his part in securing an £800,000 loan for Boris Johnson, shortly before being recommended by the former prime minister for his job.

Appearing in front of the Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Committee, the media boss said he regretted the “embarrassment” caused to his employer since it was revealed he introduced Canadian businessman – and distant cousin of Mr Johnson – Sam Blyth to the head of the civil service, Simon Case, to discuss the fund back in 2020.

But despite almost two hours of questioning, Mr Sharp continued to insist he had not “facilitated” any money changing hands in the weeks before his appointment was announced in February 2021, nor gained from it, saying he had instead “ensured due process was followed”.

The saga has caused more trouble for the Conservative Party after Prime Minister Rishi Sunak pledged to put “integrity, professionalism and accountability” at the centre of his government.

Politics live: Sunak announces cabinet reshuffle

During a grilling by MPs of all stripes, Mr Sharp described the timeline of events, saying he met his friend Mr Blyth back in September 2020 for dinner and it was the businessman who raised the widely reported “difficulties” Mr Johnson was facing with his finances.

Mr Sharp, who was working as an advisor in the Treasury at the time, said he told the businessman to go via the Cabinet Office if he wanted to help his relative, adding: “You may be a family member but you need to be careful – things need to be done by the book”.

The following month, Mr Sharp decided to apply for the BBC role and admitted he met Mr Johnson to tell him of his plan to go for the post.

But he denied to the committee that he raised Mr Blyth’s offer of financial assistance with the then PM, saying the pair’s relationship was “broadly professional”.

Mr Sharp said his friend had not mentioned the monetary help again until a phone call in November – shortly after Mr Sharp had put in his application in with the BBC – and in December he gave his number to Mr Case.

“I raised with Mr Blyth the fact I had submitted my application to be the chair of the BBC,” he said. “And therefore, to avoid a conflict or perception of conflict, I could have, we agreed, no further participation in whatever transpired whatsoever – and I didn’t.”

The chairman continued to insist he was “not party to anything that did happen or didn’t happen” after the introduction, and had raised his application with Mr Case as well.

But members of the committee were still perplexed as to why he had not mentioned the situation when he faced their scrutiny ahead of his appointment at the BBC.

The SNP’s John Nicolson also said it left the impression “so much of this is deeply establishment”, adding: “It is pals appointing pals, donation money to pals… it is all a bit banana republic and cosy.”

But Mr Sharp said: “The answer is having had the meeting with Mr Case… and having discussed the BBC application and that Mr Case put in place [measures] to ensure there was no conflict or perception of conflict, I did not raise it with this committee.

“I took comfort from the meeting with Mr Case.”

Labour MP Kevin Brennan was less comforted, however, saying: “I don’t think that is good enough in what is expected as you as a candidate.”

‘I gave no financial advice’

Mr Sharp continued to insist he had never given Mr Johnson any financial advice either, despite reports Mr Case had to tell Mr Johnson to stop asking for it in January 2021.

And while he “regrets the situation”, he was “not party to any subsequent events that took place”.

“I gave no financial advice to the prime minister [and] I gave no financial advice to Mr Blyth,” he added.

Appearing to give him a last chance to apologise, committee chair and Tory MP Damien Green, said: “You took an action that would make the prime minister very personally grateful to you while you were applying for a sensitive job which was in his gift and you didn’t tell anybody about this.

“Being as charitable as possible, wasn’t that an error of judgement?

After a long pause, Mr Sharp said: “What I undertook was to ensure that good process was followed. As far as I was concerned, the action I was doing was to put his cousin in touch with the cabinet secretary and that is as far as it went.”

Asked if he would do the same again, the chairman continued: “Well, obviously, I have had a lot of time to consider in the last few weeks my participation in this in seeking to ensure all rules were followed and I wish we weren’t where we are now.”

And after another pause, he added: “I think I will continue to consider the actions that I took. What I do know is I acted in good faith to ensure that rules were followed and in that sense I have no regret from that.

“I clearly underestimated the way things could be seen, particularly in light of when they were described with facts that weren’t true… I simply put Mr Blyth together with Mr Case… but clearly I could have said to him… find your own way to Mr Case.”

And did the BBC chairman wish he had done that? he was asked. “You can form your own judgement on that,” said Mr Sharp.

UK

Sir Keir Starmer could be ousted as PM within months, two senior Labour MPs tell Sky News

Published

8 hours ago

July 3, 2025

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Sir Keir Starmer could be ousted as PM within months, two senior Labour MPs tell Sky News

Two senior Labour MPs have suggested the prime minister may have to go within months if the government continues to perform poorly.

Sky News’ deputy political editor Sam Coates said his sources – a member of the government and a prominent politician – have “put Sir Keir Starmer on notice”.

Both warned that, if Labour performs badly in next May’s elections across Wales, Scotland and London, it could mark the end of his time in Downing Street.

Coates added: “The level of unhappiness and despair in parts of the Labour Party is so striking that right now, on the first anniversary, I am hearing from ministers in government that Starmer might have to go in months.”

Reform UK is surging in the polls in Wales, while Labour faces a threat from left-wing parties such as the Greens in London.

It comes as the prime minister made it clear that Rachel Reeves has his “complete support” as chancellor and remains integral to his project, Sky News’s political editor Beth Rigby understands.

She looked visibly upset during Prime Minister’s Questions, with a spokesperson claiming she had been affected by a “personal matter”.

A day earlier, Sir Keir’s controversial welfare bill was passed despite a sizeable rebellion from Labour MPs, with major U-turns meaning a new £5bn black hole has appeared in the country’s finances.

One senior figure told Rigby that the pair were as “as close politically” as any chancellor and prime minister have ever been.

“She is going absolutely nowhere,” they added.

Ms Reeves’s tears sent markets spiralling, with the value of the pound and long-term government bonds falling sharply.

Later in the day Sir Keir, said Ms Reeves will be chancellor for a “very long time to come”.

The prime minister said it was “absolutely wrong” to suggest her tearful appearance in the Commons related to the welfare U-turn.

“It’s got nothing to do with politics, nothing to do with what’s happened this week. It was a personal matter for her,” he said while speaking to the BBC’s podcast Political Thinking with Nick Robinson.

“I’m not going to intrude on her privacy by talking to you about that. It is a personal matter.”

Asked if she will remain in post, he said: “She will be chancellor by the time this is broadcast, she will be chancellor for a very long time to come, because this project that we’ve been working on to change the Labour party, to win the election, change the country, that is a project which the chancellor and I’ve been working on together.”

He said Ms Reeves has done a “fantastic job” and added: “She and I work together, we think together. In the past, there have been examples – I won’t give any specific – of chancellors and prime ministers who weren’t in lockstep. We’re in lockstep.”

Wes Streeting, the health secretary, also offered a strong defence for the prime minister and chancellor.

He told Sky News this morning that Sir Keir has been “consistently underestimated” and was “of course” safe as prime minister.

And he said Ms Reeves was a “tough character” who was ” resilient” and “here to stay”.

UK

Greater Manchester Police investigating grooming cases with more than 700 victims

Published

8 hours ago

July 3, 2025

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Greater Manchester Police investigating grooming cases with more than 700 victims

Despite making “significant improvements”, Greater Manchester Police (GMP) has lost the “trust and confidence” of some victims of grooming gangs, according to a report by the police watchdog.

Michelle Skeer, His Majesty’s Inspector of Constabulary, said that since 2019, when GMP started to review its non-recent child sexual exploitation investigations, “the force has improved its understanding and approach to investigating allegations of child criminal and sexual exploitation”.

The document, published today, said police have live investigations into “multi-victim, multi-offender” child sexual exploitation inquiries, involving 714 victims and survivors, and 1,099 suspects.

Grooming gangs scandal timeline

But despite recording improvements, a report by His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services (HMICFRS) also identified:

• Various training gaps within the investigation team
• Lack of consistency in evaluating case files between social care, health and police
• Failures to initially support victims meant they had “lost trust and confidence” in police

The report was commissioned by the Mayor of Greater Manchester Andy Burnham in 2024 to evaluate whether police, councils and health services can protect children from sexual exploitation in the future.

Its release comes days after Sir Keir Starmer announced he was launching a new national inquiry into grooming gangs after previously arguing one was not necessary,

The findings were issued as the final part of the CSE (child sexual exploitation) Assurance Review process which started in 2017. The first three reports examined non-recent child sexual exploitation in Manchester, Oldham and Rochdale.

Mr Skeer said that the force has been trying to improve its service to those who have experienced sexual exploitation, but previous failings have badly affected trust in GMP.

He said: “For some, trust and confidence in the police had been lost, and the force would not be able to rectify their experiences.

“It is vital that improvements are led by victims’ experiences, and if they do come forward, they are supported, protected and taken seriously.”

A recent report by Baroness Casey found a significant over-representation of Asian men who are suspects in grooming gangs in Greater Manchester, adding though authorities are in “denial” more needs to be done to understand why this is the case.

Inspectors also said there were “training gaps” in some investigation teams and issues with data sharing, with local councils sometimes not willing to provide detectives with information, leading to “significant delays in investigations” into grooming gangs.

It cites problems with intelligence provided by Manchester City Council, which took months to arrive and “was so heavily redacted that some pages contained only a few words”, the report said.

GMP is the only force in the country to set up a dedicated team to investigate grooming gangs. Called the Child Sexual Exploitation Major Investigation Team (CSE MIT) it has about 100 staff and a ringfenced budget.

In October 2024, the force told inspectors there were 59 live multi-victim, multi-offender child sexual exploitation investigations, of which 13 were being managed by the CSE MIT.

The report adds: “The force fully accepts that it made mistakes in the past.

“It has taken positive and effective steps to learn from these mistakes and improve how it investigates recent and non-recent child sexual exploitation.”

Separately, the Baird Inquiry published in July 2024 found officers at GMP were abusing their power – making unlawful arrests, unlawful and demeaning strip searches, sometimes treating victims as perpetrators, and traumatising those who have suffered sexual abuse or domestic violence.

UK

Wes Streeting defends chancellor and PM ahead of ‘seismic’ 10-year plan for NHS

Published

8 hours ago

July 3, 2025

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Wes Streeting defends chancellor and PM ahead of 'seismic' 10-year plan for NHS

The health secretary has offered a strong defence of the prime minister and chancellor – ahead of Sir Keir Starmer setting out his 10-year vision for the NHS.

PM ‘might have to go in months’ – politics latest

Wes Streeting dismissed suggestions the prime minister could be forced out in months following the toughest week of his premiership yet, and described Rachel Reeves as “resilient” and would “bounce back” following her tearful appearance in the Commons on Wednesday.

Overnight, two senior sources – a member of the government and a prominent politician – told Sky News’ deputy political editor Sam Coates that they had “put Sir Keir Starmer on notice”.

The health secretary, who was speaking as Sir Keir prepares to set out his 10-year vision for the NHS, said the prime minister had been “consistently underestimated”.

Asked by Kamali Melbourne on Sky News Breakfast whether Sir Keir was “safe”, Mr Streeting said: “Of course.

“Keir Starmer has been consistently underestimated. I wonder when people will learn.

“They said he couldn’t win the Labour leadership, but he did. They said he couldn’t change the Labour Party, but he did.

“They said he couldn’t take the Labour Party from its worst defeat since the 1930s to election victory last year. And he did and now the cynics say he can’t change the country, but he will.”

As for Ms Reeves – whose tearful appearance in the Commons spooked markets after the prime minister initially failed to back her, Mr Streeting said the chancellor was a “tough character” who was “resilient and she will bounce back”.

The health secretary declined to expand on why Ms Reeves was in the chamber at all yesterday, repeating that it was a personal matter.

“Rachel Reeves as chancellor is here to stay,” he continued.

“We need her to get the economy from strength to strength, to make sure that family finances are in better health than we were when we came into office.”

Speculation about the futures of the two most senior members of the government threaten to overshadow the announcement today, which the government says is “one of the most seismic shifts” in the health service’s history.

Sir Keir will pledge three main facets of the plan: moving care into the community, digitising the NHS, and a focus on sickness prevention.

The prime minister will announce neighbourhood health services will be rolled out across England to improve access to the NHS and to shift care out of overstrained hospitals.

Sir Keir has already promised thousands more GPs will be trained, and to end the 8am “scramble” for an appointment.

He also previously said his government will bring the NHS into the digital age, with “groundbreaking” new tools to support GPs rolled out over the next two years – including AI to take notes, draft letters and enter data.

And he will promise new contracts that will encourage and allow GP practices to cover a wider geographical area, so small practices will get more support.

Unite, one of the UK’s largest healthcare unions, welcomed the plan cautiously but said staff need to be the focus to ensure people are better looked after.

‘Reform or die’

Sir Keir said: “The NHS should be there for everyone, whenever they need it.

“But we inherited a health system in crisis, addicted to a sticking plaster approach, and unable to face up to the challenges we face now, let alone in the future.

“That ends now. Because it’s reform or die.”

Neighbourhood health services

The newly announced neighbourhood health services will provide “pioneering teams” in local communities, so patients can more conveniently access a full range of healthcare services close to home.

Local areas will be encouraged to trial innovative schemes like community outreach door-to-door to detect early signs of illness and reduce pressure on GPs and A&E.

The aim is to eventually have new health centres open 12 hours a day, six days a week to offer GP services as well as diagnostics, post-operative care and rehab.

They will also offer services like debt advice, employment support, stop smoking help or weight management.

More NHS dentists

Dentists will also be part of the plan, with dental care professionals part of the neighbourhood teams.

Dental “therapists” will carry out check-ups, treatments and referrals, while dental nurses could give education and advice to parents or work with schools and community groups.

Newly qualified dentists will be required to practice in the NHS for a minimum period, which they have said will be three years.