BBC Director-General bans the word 'talent' after Huw Edwards scandal

The BBC's director general has banned use of the word 'talent' at the corporation, in the wake of recent scandals including that of Huw Edwards.

Tim Davie revealed the new rule was part of moves to stop top stars from abusing their position.

The BBC boss said it was important 'everyone is treated equally, regardless of rank' after a series of scandals at the corporation, involving high profile individuals.

Last week the corporation began a major review into its workplace place culture, aimed at preventing any 'abuse of power' by prominent individuals.

The review was launched in the wake of the Huw Edwards scandal.

Other recent controversies include the sacking of Jermaine Jenas for sending explicit texts to two women and the treatment of contestants on Strictly Come Dancing.

Mr Davie, speaking on Radio 4's Today programme, confirmed that Edwards has still not paid back the £200,000 he earnt at the BBC following his arrest in November last year.

There has been huge pressure on the disgraced former News At Ten host to hand back the money following his conviction for possessing indecent images of children. But he has so far resisted these calls.

Speaking to Today presenter Nick Robinson about the new Respect at Work review, Mr Davie said nobody was 'indispensable'.

He told the programme: 'We often refer to people like yourself as 'talent'. I've kind of banned that. You're a presenter, I'm a leader of the organisation, and we're here to serve.'

When Robinson later in the interview used the word 'talent' again, Mr Davie reminded him that he was 'not accepting that word anymore'

Mr Davie said: 'The BBC is utterly committed. You see us acting in good faith to get at this and I would say important to that is everyone is treated equally, regardless of rank. And I hope that comes through very clearly.'

The word 'talent' is used in broadcasting to usually describe the well-known on-air faces or voices that appear on TV and radio.

Read More

BBC admits their stars 'have the potential to abuse their position' after scandals

The terms of reference of the new BBC inquiry stressed the importance of rooting out 'unacceptable behaviour' through a 'zero-tolerance approach'.

In the Radio 4 interview, Mr Davie was asked if he had heard back from Huw Edwards' lawyers about getting the £200,000 pay back.

The BBC boss told the programme: 'We have had some dialogue with lawyers but are yet to resolve the issue.'

He added: 'The ball is clearly not in my court on that one.'

Mr Davie appeared on the programme to talk about a speech he is giving this afternoon to the Future Resilience Forum about the importance of the BBC World Service.

In it he is to warn about the retreat of the BBC World Service, which broadcasts in 42 different languages.

He told the Today programme that 'malign powers' like China and Russia are investing heavily in media 'bordering into pure propaganda'.

Mr Davie suggested the Government should start paying for more of the World Service, pointing out 'there's only so much you can ask of the UK licence fee payer to pay for language services appropriately'.

The BBC boss added: 'I don't think its appropriate to charge all of this to the UK licence fee payer.'