The BBC’s director general has said bosses are “working very hard” to fix the damage done to the broadcaster following the suspension of Gary Lineker.
Tim Davie was speaking after a day when Football Focus and Final Score were taken off the air and Match Of The Day – usually presented by Lineker – was just 20 minutes long with no commentary or analysis and without even its distinctive theme tune.
The programmes were hit after sports presenters and pundits – including Ian Wright, Alan Shearer, Jason Mohammad and Alex Scott – said they would not work, in solidarity with Lineker, who was suspended after tweeting criticism of the government’s new asylum seeker bill.
Mr Davie told a BBC journalist: “As a keen sports fan I know that to miss programming is a real blow and I’m sorry about that.
“We are working very hard to resolve this situation and make sure we get output on air.
“I am in listening mode. I want to make sure that going forward we have a workable solution.”
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7:21
In full: BBC ‘sorry’ over Lineker row
He refused to go into detail about discussions, but said: “To be clear, success for me is: Gary gets back on air and together we are giving to the audiences that world-class sports coverage which, as I say, I’m sorry we haven’t been able to deliver today.”
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The row began on Tuesday when Lineker tweeted comments comparing the language used by the government about asylum seekers to that used in 1930s Germany, when the Nazis came to power – comments that the BBC said had broken editorial guidelines on impartiality.
‘He will always speak up for people who don’t have a voice’
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But, speaking to the Sunday Mirror, Lineker’s eldest son George said his father had been “a bit disappointed” by the BBC’s reaction but he would not “back down on his word”.
He added: “Dad is a good man, a good human, and I’m proud of him for standing by his word.
“That’s why he was pulled off the show – because he wouldn’t apologise. But he will always speak up for people who don’t have a voice.
“He is passionate about helping refugee charities – he took in two refugees who he is still in touch with and trying to help.
“It means a lot to him to stand up for people whose only hope is to escape a country with only the clothes on their back.
“That’s why he has been so firm.
“Will he go back to Match Of The Day? I think so – he loves Match Of The Day. But he won’t ever back down on his word.”
A snap YouGov poll showed that 53% of the British public say the BBC was wrong to suspend the former football star and veteran broadcaster.
Some 27% said the BBC was right, while 20% did not know.
PM: ‘Not everyone will always agree’ on new asylum seeker policy
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak was reluctant to comment on the matter, saying the row between the BBC and Lineker is “a matter for them, not the government”, but he admitted that “not everyone will always agree” with the new asylum seeker policy.
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Sky’s Rachael Venables explains what the impartiality rules are, and whether they have been broken.
While Lineker has been criticised for anti-government tweets, the dispute has also put the spotlight on pro-government connections at the state broadcaster.
This was before he took up the role in January 2021, having been recommended by then-PM Mr Johnson and having his appointment approved by a committee of MPs.
And before he moved to the BBC, Mr Davie was deputy chairman of the Hammersmith and Fulham Conservative Party.
Image: Alan Shearer and Gary Lineker
Doubt over Sunday’s BBC sports coverage
Meanwhile, there is doubt over the BBC’s sports coverage today, with many presenters and commentators still in doubt.
Pundit Jermain Defoe has said he will not appear on Match Of The Day 2, while the programme’s host Mark Chapman did not present for BBC Radio 5 Live Sport on Saturday.
Gabby Logan is due to host live coverage from 2.15pm as Scotland play Ireland at Murrayfield for the Six Nations Rugby, but she had not yet commented publicly on whether she will present the show or not.
The Women’s Football Show is scheduled to air from 11.45pm but it could also be affected by the BBC only airing “limited sport programming” this weekend.
Sir Keir Starmer has urged anyone with information on the Jeffrey Epstein case to come forward after Andrew Mountbatten Windsor missed the deadline to appear in front of US Congress.
US legislators have criticised Andrew for what they describe as “silence” amid their probe into Epstein after he failed to respond to their request for an interview.
When asked about Andrew missing the deadline and whether the former princeshould help the case in any way he can, Sir Keir said on his way to the G20 summit in South Africa: “I don’t comment on this particular case.”
He added that “a general principle I’ve held for a very long time is that anybody who has got relevant information in relation to these kind of cases should give that evidence to those that need it”.
Andrew is not legally obliged to talk to Congress and has always vigorously denied any wrongdoing.
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Image: Sir Keir Starmer spoke to reporters on his way to the G20 in South Africa. Pic: Reuters
It comes as Marjorie Taylor Greene, a loyal supporter-turned-critic of US President Donald Trump, said on Friday she is resigning from Congress in January.
Ms Greene’s resignation followed a public falling-out with Mr Trump in recent months, as the congresswoman criticised him for his stance on files related to Epstein, as well as on foreign policy and healthcare.
Members of the House Oversight Committee had requested a “transcribed interview” with Andrew in connection with his “long-standing friendship” with Epstein, the paedophile financier who took his own life in a New York prison in 2019 while awaiting trial on sex trafficking and conspiracy charges.
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2:35
Releasing the Epstein files: How we got here
But after saying they had not heard back, Democrats Robert Garcia and Suhas Subramanyam accused Andrew of hiding.
Their statement read: “Andrew Mountbatten Windsor’s silence in the face of the Oversight Democrat’s demand for testimony speaks volumes.
“The documents we’ve reviewed, along with public records and Virginia Roberts Giuffre’s testimony, raise serious questions he must answer, yet he continues to hide.
“Our work will move forward with or without him, and we will hold anyone who was involved in these crimes accountable, no matter their wealth, status, or political party. We will get justice for the survivors.”
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The new Epstein files: The key takeaways
It follows Andrew being stripped of his prince and Duke of York titles earlier this month.
He had previously agreed to stop using his titles, but had expected to remain a prince and retain his dukedom, ahead of the publication of the memoirs of the late Ms Giuffre, who had accused him of sexually assaulting her when she was a teenager – an accusation he denies.
A 13-year-old girl has been arrested on suspicion of murdering a woman in Swindon.
Police said the teenager was detained following an incident in Baydon Close, Moredon, in the Wiltshire town on Friday evening.
Officers responded to reports of disorder inside a house. When they arrived, a woman in her 50s living at the address was found to be not breathing. She was declared dead at the scene.
There were no other reported injuries.
Image: Forensic officers are at the scene to collect evidence
Detective Inspector Darren Ambrose, from Wiltshire Police’s major crime investigation team, said: “This is a serious incident in which a woman has sadly died.
“We have set up a cordon at the address while an investigation is carried out.
“I can confirm that we have arrested a teenage girl in connection with this incident and we are not looking for anyone else.”
Police have asked people not to speculate about the incident online as this could prejudice the case.
A police statement read: “Residents can expect to see an increased police presence in the area while we continue carrying out our enquiries into the woman’s death.
Rail fares are to be frozen for the first time in 30 years, the government has announced.
Ministers promised that millions of rail travellers will save hundreds of pounds on regulated fares, including season tickets and peak and off-peak returns between major cities.
The fare freeze applies to England and services run by English train operators.
People commuting to work three days a week using flexi-season tickets will save £315 a year travelling from Milton Keynes to London, £173 travelling from Woking to London and £57 from Bradford to Leeds, the government said.
The changes are part of Labour’s plans to rebuild a publicly owned Great British Railways. Other planned changes include tap in-tap out and digital ticketing, as well as investing in superfast Wi-Fi.
Image: The freeze applies to regulated fares, including season tickets and peak and off-peak returns. Pic: iStock
Chancellor Rachel Reeves said the government was introducing a freeze on rail fares for the first time in 30 years, which “will ease the pressure on household finances and make travelling to work, school or to visit friends and family that bit easier”.
“We all want to see cheaper rail travel, so we’re freezing fares to help millions of passengers save money,” Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander said.
“Commuters on more expensive routes will save more than £300 per year, meaning they keep more of their hard-earned cash.”
Rail unions and passenger groups welcomed the move, praising how it will make travel more affordable for passengers and promote more sustainable travel alternatives.
Eddie Dempsey, general secretary of the Rail, Maritime and Transport union, said: “More affordable fares will encourage greater use of public transport, supporting jobs, giving a shot in the arm to local economies and helping to improve the environment.”
TUC general secretary Paul Nowak said the rail fare freeze “will be a huge relief to working people”.
“This is the right decision, at the right time, to help passengers be able to afford to make that journey they need to take, and to help grow our railway in this country, because the railway is Britain’s green alternative – taking cars and lorries off our congested roads and moving people and goods safely around our country in an environmentally-friendly way,” Mick Whelan, general secretary of the train drivers union Aslef, said.
The Tories welcomed the move but said the government was “late to the platform”.
Shadow transport secretary Richard Holden said: “In government, the Conservatives kept fares on the right track with below-inflation rises and consistently called for no further hikes to protect hard-working commuters.”