Clive Myrie sparks licence-fee payer fury as BBC star apologises for failing to declare over £65,000 in earnings
BBC News presenter Clive Myrie has apologised after failing to declare more than £65,000 in external earnings from speaking and hosting engagements.
The 60-year-old broadcaster, who earns between £310,000 and £314,999 for his BBC role, admitted he did not log numerous paid events on the corporation’s external events register.
The oversight came to light after a newspaper alerted the BBC to the undeclared earnings, prompting Myrie to add 28 retrospective entries to the register.
The veteran journalist, who also hosts Mastermind, blamed the omissions on “administrative issues”.
For most of the events, Myrie charged up to £10,000, with five occasions commanding fees exceeding that amount.
His high-profile clients included American Express, the Football Association and the National Residential Landlords Association.
The Sunday Times revealed Myrie had failed to declare his work as debate chairman at GreenTalks Live, hosted by the Isle of Man’s Energy and Sustainability Centre.
He also did not report his role as keynote speaker at Dutch bank ING’s Views From The Top dinner at The Gherkin in London, with both events reportedly earning him over £10,000 each.
Other undeclared engagements included speaking at Suffolk Chamber of Commerce’s Prestige Dinner and hosting an Intermediary Mortgage Lenders Association lunch.
In a statement on X, Myrie wrote: “An apology – I’ve had several administrative issues, and I didn’t fill out the correct paperwork for some of my external public events, so they haven’t been published until now.”
An apology – I’ve had several administrative issues, and I didn’t fill out the correct paperwork for some of my external public events, so they haven’t been published until now. 1/2
— Clive Myrie (@CliveMyrieBBC) December 4, 2024
He added: “I’ve told the BBC I won’t be taking part in any more paid external events in the foreseeable future, beyond a handful of pre-existing commitments, so that this doesn’t happen again. My sincere apologies.”
The apology sparked a fierce debate on social media, with some supporting the newsreader for his “integrity” following the apology while others branded the incident “totally unacceptable” for a BBC employee.
On X, formerly Twitter, one person raged: “Totally unacceptable. You earn several hundreds of thousands a year from BBC One at Six/Ten and that doesn’t include your Mastermind salary. As a trusted BBC figure, admin issues are no excuse. It sounds like you’ve been cashing in on your privileged position at BBC. It’s wrong.”
“‘In foreseeable future’. It should be none full stop,” a second chimed in before a third hit out: “Shame. I thought you were one of the good ones.”
Elsewhere, former MP, Michael Fabricant, weighed in: “I have every sympathy (really), but I do wonder how he and his BBC pals would have been reporting this had it been a Member of Parliament who hadn’t filed his/her outside interests…”
His supporters hit back at the complaints with one saying: “Clive, please don’t let one little thing become a big thing. So what, a bit of paperwork wasn’t done. Not the end of the world but if you don’t do your public events it’ll be the end of our world. Please reconsider for your adoring audience.”
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While a second fan argued: “What you do in your spare time is your business, so long as you don’t bring BBC into disrepute – not an issue surely – nothing to see here.” (sic)
The BBC said it had taken “robust management action” against Myrie but did not provide specific details about the consequences.
The incident highlights BBC director-general Tim Davie’s transparency requirements, which mandate on-screen talent to declare outside earnings and publish declarations every three months.
A BBC spokesperson previously stated they had “spoken to Clive to remind him of his responsibilities with regards to the external events register.”
The corporation has been working to increase transparency around talent earnings, with regular declarations now required from its high-profile presenters.