How the BBC Suspended Gary Lineker While Richard Sharp Is Still Its Chief

The hashtags #BoycottBBC, #IStandwithGary, and #BBCBias topped social media platforms as a campaign to boycott the BBC emerged after it suspended football star Gary Lineker from presenting his show after he was criticized by Tory MPs and right-wing media.

This comes after a tweet by Lineker criticized a bill announced by the Conservative government on combating illegal immigration, describing the government’s rhetoric and language as similar to Nazi rhetoric.

The aforementioned brought accusations against the BBC of political bias and suppression of freedom of expression, which coincide with what the BBC chairman, Richard Sharp, has faced in recent weeks, amid calls for his resignation due to investigations into his involvement on suspicion of corruption as a result of his assistance to former Prime Minister Boris Johnson in obtaining a large financial loan, before Sharp was appointed director of the BBC in February 2021 with the help of Johnson himself.

It was also revealed recently that Richard Sharp provided tens of thousands of pounds to organizations that fund the far-right in Britain through his private charity.

 

BBC Bias

On March 10, 2023, the BBC suspended the work of football legend Gary Lineker as a presenter for his football program on the channel after he sparked controversy by comparing the British government’s new plan on illegal immigration to the rhetoric of Nazism in Germany.

“There is no huge influx. We take far fewer refugees than other major European countries,” said Lineker, who has 8.8 million followers on Twitter.

The BBC said it considered Lineker’s recent social media activity to be a breach of its guidelines, adding that he should avoid taking sides on political issues.

“The BBC has decided that Lineker will withdraw from presenting Match of the Day until they have reached an agreed and clear position with him on his use of social media,” it said in a statement.

The row was sparked by Lineker’s response to a video in which Home Secretary Suela Braverman revealed plans to end illegal Channel crossings, which was strongly condemned by the UNHCR.

In her response to the famous broadcaster’s statements, Braverman expressed, in statements to the British network ITV, disappointment that he compared her statements to the rhetoric of Nazism in Germany in the 1930s.

On its part, the Prime Minister’s Office denounced Lineker’s comments, and the Prime Minister’s private press secretary said in statements to the media: “It is disappointing that someone uses this kind of rhetoric when his salary is funded by British license fee payers.”

The Prime Minister’s office accused Lineker of ignoring the legitimate concerns of Britons with regard to small boat crossings and illegal immigration.

Lineker, the former Tottenham and Leicester City striker, is the highest-paid presenter at the publicly funded BBC, with an annual salary of £1.35 million, according to data published last year.

He has spoken in the past about immigrant rights and taken refugees to his home. He has also criticized successive Conservative governments on issues including Britain’s exit from the European Union (Brexit).

 

Sharp Criticism

Lineker’s case has drawn reactions from both sides of the British political spectrum, with many urging him to stay out of politics and stick to football, while others defend him as the moral conscience of the people and criticize the BBC’s double standards and political bias.

“My children are the grandchildren of Holocaust survivors, and I think those sorts of words should not be thrown around lightly. Gary Lineker is paid for by the British taxpayer. And it’s disappointing that he is so far out of step with the British public,” Immigration Minister Robert Jenrick told the media.

In turn, Conservative MP Andrea Jenkins said on her Twitter account, “This time Gary Lineker has certainly gone too far and if the BBC doesn’t act then I think we should defund them.”

Lineker did not care about the wave of sharp criticism and predictions of losing his job, as he continued to tweet on his account, defying all critics and adhering to his opinion against the new government’s measures against refugees.

Labour leader Keir Starmer considered the decision to expel Lineker an assault on freedom of expression in the face of political pressure, accusing the BBC of not acting impartially.

On his part, the former leader of the Labour Party, Jeremy Corbyn, commented in support of Lineker, “Well done, Gary, the plan and the law are disgusting.”

Journalist and political editor Liam Thorpe tweeted: “Gary Lineker forced to withdraw from his job because of claims of impartiality over his views on the government’s asylum system, while BBC chairman Richard Sharp has continued in his job after his role in helping to land Boris Johnson an £800,000 loan.”

Famous commentator Boris Morgan said: “WTF? How pathetically spineless. I now demand the BBC suspend every presenter who has made public comments about news or current affairs, starting with Sir David Attenborough and Lord Sugar.”

Journalist Emily Maitlis asked about the divergence of the BBC’s position with regard to freedom of expression, noting that the channel had allowed Lineker to criticize Qatar’s record in the field of human rights and raise questions about its hosting of the World Cup but now it prevents him from raising questions about human rights in Britain, which means criticizing government policy.

According to the Washington Post, the BBC’s decision came as a result of right-wing political pressure on the channel to take a stand against Lineker, which was met with widespread support from Lineker supporters on social media platforms.

The newspaper indicated that the BBC Match of the Day program, which claims not to be subject to political pressure, was suspended this week due to a boycott by broadcasters and football stars in solidarity with Lineker, among them Ian Wright, former Arsenal and England striker and analyst and former striker Alan Shearer.

In a later statement, a BBC spokesperson said: “Some of our critics have said they do not wish to appear on the show. We understand their position and have decided that the show should focus on match action, without studio presentation or (analytical) discussion.”

In what some saw as solidarity with Lineker’s position, commentators on the program: Steve Wilson, Conor McNamara, Robin Quinn, and Stephen With, published a joint statement online, saying that “they do not feel it would be appropriate to participate in the program on Saturday.”

 

Turbulent Politics

In the same context, the dispute over Linker’s statements comes in conjunction with another issue that still raises questions about the BBC’s impartiality, and related to the appointment of the chair of the commission, Richard Sharp, a former donor to the Conservative Party, who is now being investigated for what he did or did not disclose and his relationship with former PM Boris Johnson.

In another context, Byline Times reported in February 2023 that BBC chairman Richard Sharp gave tens of thousands of pounds to organizations that fund the far-right in Britain through his private charity.

It revealed that Sharp contributed to the financial support of the Institute for Policy Research (IPR) think tank after he donated more than £400,000 to the Conservative Party.

The IPR funded a study critical of the BBC’s coverage of Brexit, the Charity Records Commission revealed.

The far-right think tank has also provided funds for News-Watch, which produces content targeting the BBC.

It also provided financial support to the Centre for Policy Studies and the TaxPayers’ Alliance, which launched campaigns to demand tax cuts and end government spending cuts.

It is not yet clear whether Richard Sharp disclosed these donations to the BBC when he took over the BBC network, nor did he talk about these donations to the parliamentary committee that investigated him regarding accusations of his involvement in a corruption deal with Johnson.

Last month, a committee of MPs said that Sharp had committed serious errors of judgment by not disclosing his involvement in the then PM’s financial affairs as he sought a senior position at the BBC.

However, Sharp still insists he got the job on merit, denying any involvement in arranging that loan.

In September 2020, Richard Sharp was contacted by his friend Sam Blyth, a distant cousin of Johnson, who said he wanted to help the Prime Minister with his financial problems.

Blyth had reportedly raised the idea of acting as a loan guarantor for Johnson.

The following month, the recruitment process to find the next chairman of the BBC opened, with Sharp submitting his application in November after discussing it with Johnson.

In November 2020, Blyth spoke to Sharp again and requested he arranges a meeting with Cabinet Secretary Simon Case, Whitehall’s top civil servant.

According to the Sunday Times, Sharp acknowledged that he connected Case and Blyth but said he did not provide financial advice and insisted there was no conflict of interest.

In December 2020, Sharp met with the Cabinet Secretary to discuss Blyth’s request for a meeting and the offer of financial help for Johnson.

They agreed that Sharp should have no further involvement in the matter.

In January 2021, Sharp was named as the government’s preferred candidate for the BBC chairman role by the Prime Minister, on the advice of the Culture Secretary.

On January 14, 2021, the Commons Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Select Committee held a pre-appointment hearing with Sharp but were not informed about his role in helping facilitate the £800,000 loan guarantee for Johnson from Blyth.

The following day, the committee confirmed Sharp’s appointment for the role.

He formally took up the four-year position the following month.

In January 2023, after the Sunday Times broke the story about the loan to Johnson, Sharp wrote to BBC staff telling them he was really sorry the matter had become a distraction for the broadcaster.

As the row over Lineker’s criticism of the government’s migrant policy deepened, Liberal Democrat leader Ed Davey called on Sharp to resign.

He said: “This saga has shown failure at the very top of the BBC and the dire need to urgently protect their independence.

“We need leadership at the BBC that upholds our proud British values and can withstand today’s consistently turbulent politics and Conservative bullying tactics.”