BBC Chair Richard Sharp has stated that MacTaggart lecturer Emily Maitlis was “absolutely incorrect” to suggest that due process was not followed following her now-famous Dominic Cummings Newsnight tirade, and he has also refuted her assertion that a Conservative Party agent is on the BBC Board.
Maitlis, who has since left the BBC and is now the host of a Global podcast, made the remarks during her Edinburgh TV Festival speech last month, claiming that the BBC had “sought to soothe the complaint” quickly, which she disagreed with.
Sharp told the Digital, Culture, Media, and Sport Committee (DCMSC) this morning that Maitlis was “absolutely incorrect” to claim that due process had not been followed.
The now-famous opening portion began with Maitlis declaring, “Dominic Cummings breached the rules,” after Boris Johnson’s former assistant was suspected of violating lockdown guidelines by traveling to Barnard Castle during the first lockdown.
Maitlis and her Newsnight staff were promptly chastised for what was termed a violation of neutrality.
During a lengthy and wide-ranging DCMSC hearing alongside Sharp, Director General Tim Davie stated that the BBC took “the correct choice unquestionably.”
