Richard Sharp’s Resignation Proves Divisive At The BBC As Thoughts Turn To His Successor

deadline.com:

Richard Sharp’s resignation as BBC Chairman over a Boris Johnson loan scandal has stoked division at the British broadcaster as thoughts turn to finding his successor.

The former Goldman Sachs banker will step down at the end of June after he failed to properly declare his role in facilitating Johnson’s £800,000 ($1M) loan guarantee as ministers went about installing him on the BBC board.

Barrister Adam Heppinstall concluded Sharp’s actions gave rise to a “perceived conflict of interest,” though he stopped short of concluding that the BBC Chairman sort to curry favor by involving himself in the Prime Minister’s private financial affairs.

Sharp has dug in for months since the story was first reported by The Sunday Times and maintained today that his failure to be fully transparent about Johnson’s loan was “inadvertent and not material.” BBC employees were angry about The Sunday Times story when it broke in January, arguing that it left the corporation exposed to accusations that it was too cozy with the government and, therefore, not sufficiently impartial.