Fury as ‘out-of-touch’ BBC splurge £1k on taxi ride paid for by YOU
THE BBC splurged £484 on one taxi ride — then £481 on the return journey.
Staff also took an £8,514 flight, and ran up thousands in hotel bills.
The Beeb admitted huge outlays in the past two years — funded by licence fee payers — after a Freedom of Information request.
Its most expensive taxi in 2023 was from its Salford studios to Oxford — with the meter hitting £484.
The employee was then taken back for £3 cheaper.
Last year its priciest cab bill was £342 from Milton Keynes to London.
Its most expensive flight was £8,514 for a business-class return between Heathrow and Delhi.
There were also two £6,400 London-New York returns.
Last year it spent nearly £14,000 for four staff to stay a fortnight at the Radisson Blu in Dakar, Senegal — at £245 per night each.
It also splashed out £2,712 for seven nights at the swanky Hard Rock Hotel, near London’s Marble Arch.
Joanna Marchong of the TaxPayers’ Alliance said: “Splashing out £8,000 on flights and £480 on cabs shows how out of touch the BBC has become.”
The BBC said: “We’re mindful we’re spending public money. We have policies in place to manage this and we always work to keep costs to a minimum.”
Harassers keep jobs
BBC staff found to have sexually harassed colleagues have kept their jobs.
The Beeb upheld five formal grievances, with another partially upheld, in three years to March 2024. Only one worker was fired.
Some 39 bullying, harassment and sexual harassment claims were proven.
A third found guilty — 13 — faced disciplinary action with one dismissal, a request under Freedom of Information rules found.
The BBC said: “We take all forms of bullying, harassment and misconduct incredibly seriously.”