"Today we found out that several people have been sacked after a review into workplace culture in the light of the Huw Edwards' scandal"; thus BBC Media Editor Katie Razzall on the Six O'Clock News last night, reporting on the BBC's Annual Report.
Does this pass a sniff test ? Is it possible the BBC has sacked people without any of the other 21,000 employees noticing ?
The report itself doesn't quantify dismissals. In 'bullying and harassment', 46 formal cases were brought against individuals - one was a claim of sexual harassment; 21 were 'closed', 2 were later withdrawn and 23 were still being investigated. Cases were down from 50 the previous year, but took longer, at 119 days, to 'close'.
21 credible whistleblowing issues came forward, to be added to three still under investigation from 2022/23 and 15 still underway from 2023/24. 10 were upheld, or partially upheld, and no less than 13 are still being considered.
I refer you to the BBC's response to an FoI request from Deadline, reported in April: The corporation upheld or partially upheld a total of 39 bullying, harassment, and sexual harassment complaints in the three years to March 2024, but only 13 people faced disciplinary action and one staffer was dismissed. In short, when a BBC employee successfully complained about the conduct of a colleague, the perpetrators escaped punishment in nearly two-thirds of cases.
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