Did BBC do enough to investigate claims about presenter?

The BBC prides itself on the questions it poses to others, but right now the corporation has several to answer itself.

Most important of all, is whether or not executives did enough to thoroughly investigate the accusations made about one of its top presenters.

The scrutiny is especially intense given that the initial accusations about the unnamed man were made in May, around the time ITV was being quizzed about the conduct of Philip Schofield.

Did executives take the claims seriously enough? Who knew about them? Who did they speak to? And why did it take until today to suspend the presenter?

Reading the BBC's statements in detail, the corporation seems keen to put across what it considers to be the nuance of the case.

Firstly, it says the allegations put to it by The Sun newspaper on Thursday were new.

Secondly, that it had made an effort to contact the alleged victim's family, but had encountered difficulty.

And thirdly, that there are important privacy considerations here too, namely that the presenter has a right to a private life and to a fair process.

After all, none of us have yet seen any evidence to prove these claims. 

But under pressure, the BBC has now made contact with police.

ITV News understands that executives will meet with officers from the Metropolitan Police tomorrow. 

The Met has not yet launched a formal investigation - it says no allegation has actually been referred to it.

But it may yet decide to ask the questions the BBC is accused of failing to answer via the corporation's internal inquiries. 

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