BBC overhauls social media rules for presenters after Gary Lineker row

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Star BBC presenters such as Gary Lineker will be banned from party political campaigning or endorsements but will be allowed to express views on political issues and policies, according to new internal rules around social media use.

The UK’s national broadcaster said on Thursday that hosts of “flagship programmes” would have to observe a new code of conduct, following a review into social media guidance for its journalists and presenters.

These include football show Match of the Day, which Lineker presents, Antiques Roadshow, Dragon’s Den, major sporting events, cookery show MasterChef, Top Gear and Strictly Come Dancing.

Presenters of those programmes “carry a particular responsibility to respect the BBC’s impartiality” because of their profile, the corporation said.

BBC director-general Tim Davie launched the review, which was led by former ITN boss John Hardie, following a backlash in March against the broadcaster’s decision to suspend Lineker after finding that he had breached impartiality rules by criticising the UK government’s immigration policy on Twitter.

The move led fellow presenters to walk out in support of the veteran host, forcing the BBC to pull several TV and radio programmes and truncate its flagship football show, sparking questions about Davie’s future.

Within days, Davie was forced to reinstate Lineker, who was paid £1.35mn in 2021-22.

Under the new rules, which take effect immediately, presenters of flagship shows must not endorse or attack a political party while their programme is on air and during a two-week window before and after a series is broadcast.

They must also not criticise the character of individual politicians in the UK, comment on any issue of political debate during an election period, or take up an official role for a campaigning group.

Staff working in news and current affairs and factual journalism production, along with senior leaders, will have to continue “to abide by the strictest rules on impartiality”, while other staff or freelancers are not required to uphold the BBC’s impartiality on social media. 

The corporation said the new regulations asked everyone working for it to respect “high standards of civility in public discourse” and not bring it into disrepute.

Responding to the new rules, Lineker said on social media that they were “all very sensible”.

The presenter sparked the review by describing ministers’ plan to ban people arriving in the UK without prior permission from claiming asylum as an “immeasurably cruel policy directed at the most vulnerable people in language that is not dissimilar to that used by Germany in the 30s”.

He previously expressed the view that, as a freelance sports presenter, he was not covered by the strictest sections of the BBC impartiality rules.

Davie said the BBC had “a responsibility to treat people with civility and respect, particularly at a time when public debate and discussion, both on and offline, can be so polarised”.

Hardie said it was “clear that the British public expect BBC non-news presenters to maintain high standards on social media and respect an appropriate balance between impartiality and freedom of expression. It is timely for the BBC to clarify where that balance lies.”

Any breach of the new guidance could lead to disciplinary action for employees, including possible termination of employment in serious circumstances.