An apology has been issued by the BBC for the handling of a complaint made about presenter Huw Edwards. The broadcaster confirmed that allegations were made in May 2023, but did not reach senior managers until 6 July. The complaint was not escalated quickly enough, according to the corporation, which subsequently pledged to alter its processes. An independent report authored by Deloitte into the BBC’s complaints handling procedure revealed that the family of a young person had initially made the complaint on 18 May.
When the contact was first made, it was not logged in line with the appropriate procedures, nor was there a documented process for following up allegations. The complaint was eventually recorded in the security report, but not escalated to the relevant regional operations security manager, as intended. Although the complainant was pointed towards audience services the day after they made the complaint, the case was not logged onto the BBC’s case management system, which meant that there was no opportunity for wider visibility of the case within the broadcaster.
The report also found a lack of confidence among some employees in initiating complaints, particularly when grievances relate to a more senior colleague or a high-profile figure, due to an actual or perceived power discrepancy between the complainant and the object of the complaint. The BBC said various improvements had previously been made to its non-editorial complaints process, however, it is taking further measures to deliver better consistency across its teams. It has pledged to make better use of technology to gain a complete picture of all cases.
In recent months, The Sun newspaper published claims regarding a BBC News presenter paying a young person for explicit photographs. Representatives from the BBC met with detectives, but there was no investigation. Detectives later concluded that no criminal offence had been committed. Huw Edwards’ wife, Vicki Flind, who named her husband as the individual at the centre of the allegations, stated on the 13th of July that he would respond when he felt well enough. Meanwhile, BBC Director General Tim Davie sent an email to staff stating that an internal investigation would continue
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