New pressure is being put on Richard Sharp to step down as chairman of the BBC.
Baroness Wheatcroft and Jonathan Dimbleby have joined the chorus of people who are questioning his position.
For his part in arranging an £800,000 loan for the then-prime minister Boris Johnson, Mr. Sharp is receiving criticism.
Mr. Sharp committed “serious errors of judgment” in doing this when seeking for the BBC job, according to a committee of MPs. He claims he was hired based on qualifications.
On Monday, Rishi Sunak said he would wait to see the results of an inquiry that the commissioner for public appointments had ordered before he would announce whether or not he had confidence in Mr. Sharp.
When explicitly challenged later about the faith the prime minister had in Mr. Sharp, Mr. Sunak’s official spokeswoman replied: “Yes, we are satisfied the process was followed,” adding, “But there is a review of this process, and we will look at that closely.”
Veteran BBC journalist Mr. Dimbleby said on BBC Newsnight that Mr. Sharp should “fall on his sword” in the name of honor.
According to the available information, “I have no doubt that he was appointed on merit,” he declared. The problem is merely one of accountability and transparency.
The BBC needs this “like it needs a hole in the head,” he said, adding that the credibility of the organization in the eyes of the public was at risk.
It is “difficult” to disagree with Mr. Dimbleby’s viewpoint, according to cross-bench peer Baroness Wheatcroft, who serves on the Lords Communications and Digital Committee.
