BBC male presenters agree pay cut

  • BBC

Some male BBC presenters have accepted pay cuts following revelations over the corporation's gender pay gap.

Jeremy Vine, John Humphrys, Nicky Campbell, Jon Sopel, Nick Robinson and Huw Edwards have all agreed, either formally or in principle, to reduce their salaries, a BBC spokesperson said.

The announcement comes after the BBC published the salaries of employees earning more than £150,000 that revealed a shocking discrepancy in male and female presenters' and actors' pay.

Mr Humphrys, who presents the Radio 4 Today programme, was shown to earn between £600,000 and £650,000. The highest paid woman was Claudia Winkleman on between £450,000 and £499,999. He said cutting his salary was his decision.

He told the Press Association: ""The BBC is in a very, very different position from what it was all those years ago when I was, like many other people in the BBC, having money pretty much thrust upon us, because there was loads of money in the BBC....

"There was no shortage of cash. There is a shortage of cash. And it seems to me, and I thought this before the salary disclosures last year but the salary disclosures reinforced the idea that some of us were earning much more than others."

Nick Robinson is among the BBC male staff who has agreed to a cut in his earnings. Credit: PA

Earlier this month, the BBC's China editor Carrie Gracie resigned from her role in protest at unequal pay.

Mr Humphrys was later caught on tape seemingly criticising Ms Gracie's demands for equal pay in an off-air conversation with North America editor, Mr Sopel.

The broadcasting veteran was heard to say he could hand over more than his colleague Mr Sopel earned, and would still be "left with more than anybody else".

Radio 2 host Mr Vine was one of the highest paid stars, earning £700,000-£749,999, while BBC News presenter Mr Edwards earned £550,000-£599,999 and Mr Sopel received £200,000-£249,999.

5 live presenter Nicky Campbell was on between £400,000-£449,999

The extent of pay cuts is not yet known, BBC News reported.

Radio 2's Chris Evans was revealed to be the broadcaster's highest paid star, earning more than £2 million.

An independent audit into equal pay at the BBC will be published next week.