4 2GM Tuesday September 15 2020 | the times
News
The BBC is braced for a critical report
into its gender pay record — as new
figures show that more than 700 female
staff have been awarded salary increas-
es after lodging complaints.
The latest BBC “rich list”, published
today, will show that the gender split of
presenters earning more than £150,
has narrowed to 55:45 in favour of men,
an improvement on 60:40 last year and
75:25 in 2017.
This year’s figures have been helped
by salary rises for Lauren Laverne and
Fiona Bruce as well as the departures of
high-earning male presenters includ-
ing Chris Evans and John Humphrys.
Executives will seize on the figures as
evidence that the corporation has
turned the corner on gender pay,
following years of turmoil including the
resignation of Carrie Gracie as China
editor and Samira Ahmed’s employ-
ment tribunal victory. However The
Hit the high notes Kevin James played on Brimham Rocks near Harrogate, North Yorkshire, to highlight the importance of nature and its profound impact on the arts
BBC braced for further criticism of
gender gap as stars’ pay revealed
Times understands that the
corporation’s pay record will face
renewed scrutiny in the coming weeks
as the Equality and Human Rights
Commission (EHRC) publishes its
long-awaited investigation into sus-
pected discrimination against women.
The number of women given pay
rises after bringing formal or informal
complaints since the gender pay scan-
dal erupted in 2017 has now passed 700,
according to Freedom of Information
figures obtained by The Guardian,
highlighting how widespread the
problems had been. The BBC rushed to
settle outstanding cases this summer as
the departing director-general Lord
Hall of Birkenhead wanted pay equality
as one of his legacies.
The EHRC inquiry was launched in
March last year after Gracie publicly
accused the corporation of illegally
paying women less than men for equal
work. It is examining pay grievance
cases to establish whether the BBCbroke the law. Sources said the quango
has also been presented with the con-
cerns of women who believe the new
pay structures introduced to correct
historic inequalities are still insuffi-
ciently transparent, with excessively
wide salary bands. Accusations have
also been made that the corporation’s
processes for addressing pay com-
plaints are punitive and long-winded.
The BBC Board was briefed on the
progress of the investigation in May, in
a sign of how seriously it is being taken.
The EHRC widened the inquiry’s time-
frame in February to allow it to consid-
er more evidence of potential unlawful
pay discrimination.
It has the power to require employers
to end discriminatory practices and
take steps to prevent discrimination in
future. Failure to act on recommenda-
tions can lead to the commission issu-
ing an “unlawful act” notice, effectively
finding the BBC in breach of the law.
The BBC insists that its policies haveimproved significantly. It has pledged
to learn any lessons needed from the
EHRC’s work, but expressed confi-
dence that it could demonstrate its
commitment to reform. A BBC man-
agement source said: “We have made
progress on pay, but that doesn’t mean
there isn’t more work to do.”
Lord Hall had aimed to eradicate the
gender pay gap by the end of this year.
Its median pay gap reduced from 9.3 per
cent in 2017 to 6.7 per cent in 2019.
Today’s “rich list” will feature four
women in the top ten for the first time,
with Laverne, the Desert Island Discs
presenter, and Bruce, the Question
Time host and newsreader, joining the
upper ranks. Gary Lineker, the Match of
the Day presenter, remains the corpora-
tion’s highest-paid star.
The list is dominated by radio pre-
senters, as most television stars are paid
through BBC Studios, the corporation’s
commercial arm, which is exempt from
transparency requirements.Matthew Moore Media Correspondent
Two out of three people want the fash-
ion industry to slow down and focus
more on clothes that last to reduce the
300,000 tonnes of garments burnt or
buried in the UK every year.
A group of MPs commissioned a sur-
vey as they explore ways of making the
fashion industry more sustainable. It
found that a third of young people felt
under constant pressure to buy new
clothes.
A parliamentary inquiry last year in-
We want greener clothes, shoppers tell fashion firms
to “fast fashion” revealed that the in-
dustry was fuelling wasteful habits by
offering dresses online for as little as £5.
British shoppers buy more new clothes
than any other Europeans.
In a report published today the all-
party parliamentary group for ethics
and sustainability in fashion calls for
more investment in fabric recycling
and more research into greener fabrics.
It also wants the industry to provide
clearer information and labelling about
the sustainability of clothes and urges
government investment in skills tobring more clothes manufacturing jobs
back to the UK.
Its survey suggested that women
were more likely than men to agree that
they would “be happy for the fashion
industry to ‘slow down’ ie less produc-
tion of mass-produced cheap clothing
in favour of good quality clothing that
will last”. The survey of 3,000 adults by
Censuswide found 69 per cent of
women and 62 per cent of men agreed
with that statement.
The report says: “Fashion is at a
crossroads. Does it seek to rebuild usingthe ‘business as usual model’ or will it
take this opportunity to create a more
just and sustainable approach which
builds greater long-term resilience?”
“A number of big fashion houses have
made commitments to reduce the
number of collections they produce
going forwards,” the report says. “Gucci
has cut shows from five to two each year
and has declared the traditional fashion
calendar obsolete. Saint Laurent an-
nounced it would sit out Paris fashion
week this month and set its own sched-
ule going forward.”Ben Webster
Navy drone unveiled
A torpedo-releasing quadrocopter
drone was unveiled yesterday by
Ben Wallace, the defence
secretary. He said the T
drone, which will fly off UK
warships, is due to come into
service next year. With a 20km
(12-mile) range and a payload of
180kg, it can also perform casualty
evacuation. It is made by Malloy
Aeronautics of Berkshire.Anger harms the heart
People who have had one heart
attack are at more risk of a
second if they are sarcastic,
moody or bad tempered,
according to research. The study,
published in European Journal of
Cardiovascular Nursing, followed
2,321 heart attack survivors and
said that working out which were
“hostile” could help medical staff
to identify their extra risk.Grenfell designs wiped
Emails and design drawings
related to the Grenfell Tower
refurbishment appear to have been
lost after a contractor wiped his
laptop, he told the inquiry into the
2017 fire. Daniel Anketell-Jones,
who worked for the cladding
specialists Harley Facades until
March 2016, said that he deleted
all the files so he could keep his
laptop after leaving the company.Teenager murdered
A teenager has been stabbed to
death in Islington, north London.
Police officers were called to the
scene at about 8pm yesterday and
the victim, who police said was
male, was treated by paramedics
but pronounced dead. No one
has been arrested and the
Metropolitan Police are working
to identify the victim so that they
can inform his next of kin.A A A C C D E E
G H I K L L L L
L N N O O O P R
R R R R S S T T
Solve all five clues using each
letter underneath once only1 Condiment ( 4 )
2 Taxing ( 4 )
3 Leap, bound (6)
4 Relating to voters (9)
5 Music genre (4,1,4)
Quintagram® No 79 5
Solutions MindGames in Times
Cryptic clues Page 10 of TimesDANNY LAWSON/PANew homes disparity
A new housebuilding formula
will mean that northern councils
have to cancel their plans while
huge numbers of homes are built
in the south, according to an
analysis. The government has
revised quotas for councils using
factors including “relative
affordability”. The Local
Government Association has
found that Dover, for example,
would be expected to deliver
294 per cent more homes, while
66 per cent fewer would be built
in Newcastle.