Search begins for new BBC director-general

THE BBC has begun its search for a new director-general following the resignation of Tim Davie.

Mr Davie, who lives near Henley, announced earlier this month that he would be stepping down from the role.

The advert for his position went live on Monday.

The search will be headed by the leadership advisory firm Egon Zehnder, with the deadline to apply listed as December 31.

The job specification describes the role as one of “the most important, high-profile public posts in the UK”.

The director-general is responsible for decisions across the BBC’s editorial matters, output, public service delivery and overall commercial success.

This comes after a leaked memo on impartiality, written by Michael Prescott, a former external adviser to the BBC’s editorial standards committee, outlined concerns that a Panorama episode selectively edited a speech made by President Donald Trump before the attack on the US Capitol in 2021.

Mr Davie resigned along with the chief executive of BBC News, Deborah Turness.

On Monday, Samir Shah, the chairman of the BBC, said officials were “too slow” to act and should have apologised earlier for the edit. Appearing in front of the Commons culture, media and sport committee, Mr Shah said he had “spent a great deal of time” trying to stop Mr Davie from resigning, adding he had the board’s “full confidence throughout”.

The committee also heard from Mr Prescott, who told MPs that Mr Davie “seemed to me to be doing a first rate job across 80 or 90 per cent of the portfolio”.

But Mr Prescott said: “It was just that he had this blind spot on editorial failings. I think it’s a bit of a tragedy he’s gone.

“I thought he was a supreme talent, but he had this blind spot.”

Asked if the documentary had harmed Mr Trump’s image, Mr Prescott said: “I should probably restrain myself a little bit, given that there is a potential legal action. All I could say is, I can’t think of anything I agree with Donald Trump on.”

Pressed on the subject again and asked if he agrees that Mr Trump’s reputation had been tarnished, he said: “Probably not.”

Asked whether he thought it was right for Mr Davie to have resigned, Mr Prescott told MPs: “I would have hoped they’d get on top of these problems, start sorting them out in a systemic and more methodical way and everything would have been fine.”

But he insisted he wrote the memo because he is a “strong supporter of the BBC”, saying there was “no party politics” behind his decision.