, Culture Secretary Lucy Frazer thanked Sharp for his work and said she was sure there would be"further opportunities for you to make a significant contribution to public life."
The opposition Labour Party’s Lucy Powell said the breach had"caused untold damage to the reputation of the BBC and seriously undermined its independence as a result of the Conservatives’ sleaze and cronyism."Sharp started his four-year term as chairman of the publicly funded BBC in February 2021. At the time, he was asked about his ties to the government in the period before his appointment. He denied that anyone in the party had helped his application.
During the appointment process Sharp didn’t disclose his conversations about the loan to the public or to lawmakers, though he did tell the UK’s most senior civil servant, Cabinet Secretary Simon Case. Case wrote to Johnson in December 2020 saying that Sharp’s imminent appointment made it"important that you no longer ask his advice about your personal financial matters," according to the Sunday Times. Sharp for not telling them about the loan talks, saying it undermined confidence in the public appointments process.
The UK’s commissioner for public appointments launched a probe into the process, then recused himself because he had met Sharp on previous occasions, passing the job to Heppinstall.In times of uncertainty you need journalism you can trust. For 14 free days, you can have access to a world of in-depth analyses, investigative journalism, top opinions and a range of features. Journalism strengthens democracy. Invest in the future today. Thereafter you will be billed R75 per month.