The BBC annual report has shown that 52 journalists at the taxpayer funded news corporation are paid more than £150,000 a year.
This year’s report has revealed that the top journalists earnings rose 3% as 52 earn more than £150k a year.
The British Broadcasting Corporation has cut spending on its top journalistic talent by 10% over the past year.
Naga Munchetty, the presenter of BBC Breakfast, got the biggest pay rise of 30%, going from £195,000 – £199,999 to earning £255,000– £259,999.
Press Gazette’s calculations have revealed that about £9.8m was spent on the BBC journalists who earned £150,000 in 2020/2021.
(Image: PA)
The previous year’s spend was £9.47m.
£2.7m was paid to news and current affairs senior executives alone.
Huw Edwards has been the BBC’s best-paid journalist since 2018.
The Welsh presenter did however have his salary drop 9% in the 2020/21 financial year.
The BBC only reveals wages that lie within a £5k pay band, therefore the pay changes are approximate.
Economics editor Faisal Islam went from earning £155,000 to between £205,000 and £209,999.
He did however join the BBC in the 2019/20 financial year so the new amount is based on his first full year as Editor.
(Image: Getty Images Europe)
Victoria Derbyshire’s BBC Two show was cancelled in March last year so she got the biggest pay cut, originally earning between £215,000 – £219,999.
She now presents BBC News and earns between £170,000-£174,999.
Despite a focus on global health during a pandemic, BBC medical editor Fergus Walsh and health editor Hugh Pym did not make the over £150,000 earners list.
Popular BBC Radio 2 presenter Zoe Ball was the second biggest on-air earner after Match of the Day presenter Gary Lineker.
She took a 10% voluntary pay cut to contribute to the spend reduction of the public service.
(Image: BBC)
Zoe said she felt uncomfortable about her £1.13m salary but her new reduced salary, £980,000, is not yet in the report.
BBC director-general Tim Davie said: “I think everyone recognises the strategy which is getting value to audiences and most conversations are mutual and constructive.
“Clearly as a management team we want to get more value and we are willing to make tough decisions to that extent, but I think these conversations have all been constructive, as with Zoe Ball where she came forward and said she wanted to adjust her salary. I think everyone is absolutely with the programme on that one.”
(Image: BBC)
Davie continued: “Overall most of the declines if you look at them are structural, either renegotiations – there was quite a lot in terms of little reductions with things like election coverage or not, but overall I think we should maintain restraint in pay across the top talent regardless of the shape of the year.”
The report warned that more people will appear on the top-earners lists as the BBC is in an “extremely competitive market for talent, with inflation levels for pay often well above the average for the UK economy”.
(Image: DIGITAL/EROTEME.CO.UK)
The BBC revealed it has closed 1,331 pay cases since 2017, and has only seven still active.
The media corporations gender pay gap has closed from 9.3% in 2017 to 6.2% in 2020 to 5.2% this year.
Considering the national average pay gap is 15.5%, that is pretty great.
The BBC said its pay gap for black, Asian and minority ethnic staff is still near 0%.
Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk
