The BBC has published a review set up to establish the facts around the decision to appoint Martin Bashir as Religious Affairs Correspondent in September 2016 and the subsequent re-grading of the role to Religion Editor in 2018.

The full report is available here. The review was conducted by Ken MacQuarrie and looked at the following three questions:

Was the recruitment process intended to find the right person for the role as opposed to being pre-determined?
What did those who appointed Martin Bashir know about: (i) his previous misconduct in relation to the 1995 Panorama; and (ii) his other public controversies?
In what circumstances was Martin Bashir’s role re-graded in 2018?
The report concludes:

“In my view, the recruitment process for the Religious Affairs Correspondent was targeted at finding the right person for the role. Although there were some shortcomings in the process by which he was re-employed, I am satisfied that that he was ultimately appointed because his knowledge and experience were considered to be the best match to the requirements for the role at that time. I have found no evidence that Martin Bashir was re-hired to contain and/or cover up the events surrounding the 1995 Panorama programme. In my view, that theory is entirely unfounded.

“As regards the due diligence conducted on Martin Bashir, the actions of the individuals involved in the recruitment and re-grading of Martin Bashir can only properly be judged against the state of the BBC’s corporate understanding as it was in 2016 and not as it stands now in 2021. None of the individuals involved in the recruitment of Martin Bashir had knowledge of all of the matters contained in the Dyson Report. I have no doubt that if any of the individuals involved in the appointment of Martin Bashir in 2016 had been aware of what is now publicly known as a result of the Dyson Report, Martin Bashir would have never been reappointed to the BBC.”

BBC Director-General, Tim Davie, says: “I would like to thank Ken MacQuarrie for his report. It finds the recruitment process was targeted to find the right person for the role and it was conducted in good faith.

“While the report finds processes were largely followed at the time, it is clear we need to reflect on the findings to ensure consistent best practice is applied in our recruitment.

“Finally, it is without doubt that had the organisation been aware of what is now publicly known because of the Dyson Report Martin Bashir would have never been reappointed.”

The BBC will reflect on the findings and, in particular, we will look at introducing more rigorous pre-appointment checks - such as checking social media and other online materials - for the recruitment of senior and public facing roles at the BBC in the future.

We will also remind hiring managers of the need for consistent communication with all candidates and to ensure consistent, appropriate record keeping of recruitment processes and introduce checks going forward, to ensure this happens.

Notes to Editors

The BBC announced this review on 24 May

The review was led by Ken MacQuarrie and the report was delivered to the Director General on Friday, 11 June

It was published the next working day, Monday 14 June

The full report can be found below

Kenny MacQuarrie biography

Ken MacQuarrie has had a 46 year career at the BBC. He stepped down as the BBC's Director, Nations and Regions in January 2021.

Since stepping down he has been delivering new measures to reaffirm the Corporation’s commitment to impartiality, alongside the Director General and Director of Editorial Policy. He has also worked on a number of key corporate projects for the BBC Executive, including co-ordinating the recent elections coverage.

Ken held the post of Director, Nations and Regions for four years from 2016, where he was responsible for nearly 6,000 staff working for the BBC in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

He joined the BBC in 1975 as a researcher and during his career at the Corporation he has held roles at BBC Scotland including Controller, Head of Programmes, Head of Features and Head of Gaelic, Features and Children’s culminating as Director, BBC Scotland from 2009 to 2016.