BBC Stars' Salaries Over £450k To Be Revealed

BBC stars earning more than £450,000 will be forced to disclose their salaries as part of the Government's drive to improve transparency at the public sector broadcaster.

The change will mean that any star earning as much, or more, as the BBC's director general Lord Tony Hall will be asked to disclose their salary.

This is likely to catch some of the BBC's biggest names, such as Match Of The Day presenter Gary Lineker, Top Gear and radio presenter Chris Evans and presenter and former political editor Andrew Marr.

The Government, which will tomorrow publish its white paper on the once-in-a-decade renewal of the BBC's governing charter, has been keen to push for more transparency over how the BBC spends its annual £3.7bn licence fee.

John Whittingdale, the Culture Secretary, told Parliament earlier he wished "to see as much transparency as possible" at the BBC and said "transparency is very important when public money is involved".

Senior managers at the BBC already have to disclose their salaries, but stars have been protected from such disclosures, with the corporation arguing that such information is commercially sensitive.

BBC executives argue that revealing what its top talent is being paid is inflationary and also encourages people to poach their staff.

A senior Government figure acknowledged to Sky News that only a handful of stars would be caught at this level, rather than the hundreds that could have been caught if the bar had been set at £150,000 as originally mooted.

Pay disclosure is just one of a raft of changes to be announced as the Culture Secretary publishes his white paper on the future of the BBC.

The Government is expected to overhaul the corporation's governance model, introducing a new unitary board to run the BBC.

Mr Whittingdale has signalled that he wants to appoint the majority of the new board, but could water down such plans in the face of strong resistance from the BBC and the public.

Stars of the big and small screen have also this week been protesting against any such move.

Professor Brian Cox, the science professor and TV personality, has joined a chorus of stars imploring the Government not to meddle with the BBC's independence.

He wrote on Twitter: "Whittingdale is testing my patience. BBC 'impartiality' can't be judged by a board with majority of government appointed members. Dear God."

Damian Green, a former Home Office minister, warned the Government not to attack the BBC's editorial independence if it wanted to avoid a backbench rebellion.