BBC boss admits evidence error

Former BBC director general Mark Thompson has said tonight: "The first questions I want to answer are ones from the MPs and to put Parliament first".

Mr Thompson said he had "made a submission" to the Public Accounts Committee and did not want to make any public statements ahead of his appearance before MPs on Monday.

He has accused BBC Trust boss Lord Patten and trustee Anthony Fry of "fundamentally misleading" the committee in July when they gave evidence on senior staff payouts at the corporation.

It has emerged that the BBC has written to four former staff, whose pay-offs were investigated by the National Audit Office, to tell them they could be named to the committee.

In written evidence to MPs, head of corporate affairs Andrew Scadding, said the four had "resigned at the time of well publicised operational incidents at the BBC".

They are believed to include former BBC1 boss Peter Fincham who reportedly got a £500,000 pay-off when when he left the corporation in the wake of a scandal sparked by misleading footage of the Queen.

In written evidence published today, the BBC's head of HR, Lucy Adams admitted drafting a memo outlining plans for pay-offs to deputy director general Mark Byford and marketing boss Sharon Baylay.

She had initially told MPs she had not seen the note send by former Director General Mark Thompson to the then Chairman of the BBC Trust.

Read: BBC HR chief admits 'mistake' in staff payouts evidence

In written evidence to MPs investigating the excessive pay-offs to BBC senior staff, former Director General Mark Thompson accused the BBC Trust of making "misleading" statements.

Mr Thompson also said that contrary to her initial evidence HR director Lucy Adams was one of the authors of a note detailing plans for pay-offs to deputy director general Mark Byford and marketing boss Sharon Baylay.

Ms Adams has since admitted making a mistake in her evidence and confirmed "that I was involved in drafting that memo".

Read: BBC HR chief admits 'mistake' in staff payouts evidence

The BBC's head of HR, Lucy Adams, has admitted making a mistake in her evidence to a committee of MPs investigating excessive pay-offs to senior staff.

In July, Ms Adams said that she had not seen a note detailing plans for pay-offs to deputy director general Mark Byford and marketing boss Sharon Baylay.

She has since said she was involving in writing it, in written evidence published today:

"At the time, I was not clear which document the chair was referring to and so I could not recollect with absolute certainty whether or not I had seen the memo sent by Mark Thompson to the then chairman on October 7 2010.

"Since the hearing, I am now clear which document was being referred to and I can confirm that I was involved in drafting that memo, although I had not seen the final note sent to the Trust until recently."

Read: Patten 'not concerned' by claims

BBC Trust chairman Lord Patten has said he has "no concerns at all" over former Director General Mark Thompson's claims that he made "inaccurate statements" to MPs over payoffs to senior executives.

He also said he was "looking forward" to his appearance before the Commons Public Accounts Committee on Monday which will explore the issue further.

Read: Former Director General Mark Thompson claims BBC Trust 'misled MPs'

Public Accounts Committee member Steve Barclay has claimed that evidence given by former BBC director general Mark Thompson and Executive Board member Marcus Agius differs from that of BBC Trust chairman Lord Patten and member Anthony Fry.

Mark Thompson has accused the Chairman of the BBC Trust, Lord Patten, of making "inaccurate statements" to MPs over payoffs to senior executives.

Appearing before MPs in July, Lord Patten alleged that the former Director General had not been open with the Trust about payoffs to two senior executives.

In a 13,000-word letter to MPs, Mr Thompson claims that information was kept from the National Audit Office and the outgoing head of human resources, Lucy Adams, misled MPs over her involvement.