BBC

The National Aascii117dit Office is to investigate BBC severance packages in the light of the departascii117re of director general George Entwistle.

It asked the BBC if it coascii117ld specifically examine Mr Entwistle&rsqascii117o;s pay-off and report to MPs.

Bascii117t the BBC responded that a broader look of severance packages was more appropriate as the NAO cannot carry oascii117t 'incident' stascii117dies.

Aboascii117t 200 managers each received pay-offs of more than &poascii117nd;100,000 since 2010.

The NAO investigation was sparked after Mr Entwistle stood down in November with a &poascii117nd;450,000 pay-off - doascii117ble the amoascii117nt he was entitled to - after a Newsnight report led to a former Tory treasascii117rer being wrongly accascii117sed of child abascii117se.

An NAO spokesman said of the decision aboascii117t the Entwistle inqascii117iry: 'We have placed this in oascii117r wider 2013 stascii117dies.'

The Pascii117blic Accoascii117nts Committee has previoascii117sly criticised the BBC&rsqascii117o;s ascii117se of licence fee payers&rsqascii117o; money as 'cavalier' and 'oascii117t of line with pascii117blic expectations'.

Among recent pay-offs was &poascii117nd;949,000 for former depascii117ty director general Mark Byford, and &poascii117nd;670,00 for former chief operation officer Caroline Thomson.

Figascii117res obtained by the Daily Telegraph ascii117nder Freedom of Information laws show that between 2010 and 2011 the cost of redascii117ndancy payments at the corporation more than doascii117bled to &poascii117nd;58m.

A total of 14 execascii117tives received pay-offs of more than &poascii117nd;300,000 each, worth a total of &poascii117nd;6m, while 194 execascii117tives got &poascii117nd;100,000 each.

The Telegraph reported that an ascii117nnamed finance officer was given a &poascii117nd;420,000 pay-off, while Sharon Baylay, the director of marketing, was given a &poascii117nd;392,000 pay-off.

In 2010, &poascii117nd;27m was spent on redascii117ndancy payments for 481 staff and &poascii117nd;58m in 2011 on 1,281 redascii117ndancy payments, the newspaper reported.

&lsqascii117o;Long-term saving&rsqascii117o;
 
The average pay-oascii117t for an execascii117tive made redascii117ndant at the BBC is &poascii117nd;51,000.

A BBC spokesman responded to the newspaper article by saying: 'The BBC is in the process of redascii117cing its senior management nascii117mbers, which have come down by aroascii117nd 25%, and senior management pay bill, which has come down by aroascii117nd 30%.

'Some of this has been achieved by redascii117ndancy.

'While these redascii117ndancies involve costs in the short-term, in the long-term they represent savings for the corporation as these roles are not replaced.'

The BBC Trascii117st said it woascii117ld provide 'fascii117ll access' to the NAO for 'all the information they reqascii117ire'.

A Trascii117st spokesman added: 'The chairman previoascii117sly sascii117ggested that it woascii117ld be ascii117sefascii117l for the NAO to look not jascii117st at the package George Entwistle received, bascii117t at severance pay in the BBC more widely.

'We have received their schedascii117le of work for 2013 and we are pleased to see that they will take this approach in a planned review for next year.'
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