No 10 tells BBC to ‘set the record straight’

DOWNING Street last night called on the BBC to ‘set the record’ straight over its ‘misleading’ coverage of the Brexit costs.

No 10 was angered by the Corporation’s claim yesterday that Theresa May had ‘bowed to pressure’ from the EU to hand over ‘up to £50billion’ to Brussels as part of a divorce deal.

On Wednesday night, No 10 dismissed newspaper claims the bill could rise as high as £50billion. The UK’s offer is thought to be about £40billion – far lower than the £90billion demanded by some in Brussels.

But early yesterday, the BBC was still reporting the claim as fact. On a 6am bulletin on Radio 4’s flagship Today programme, host Sarah Montague announced: ‘The Government has bowed to pressure from the European Union and offered to pay up to £50billion as part of the UK’s Brexit settlement.’

The headline’s wording was almost identical to the opening paragraph in a story in the Left-wing Guardian newspaper yesterday. It began: ‘The UK has bowed to EU demands on the Brexit divorce bill, in a move that could see the UK paying.’

Later BBC bulletins toned down the claim but the Prime Minister’s official spokesman suggested the BBC should offer a correction.

He said: ‘I have never commented on speculation, of which there is much. What I would say is I am confident if the BBC have ended up misleading the public with any of this speculation then I am sure they’d want to set the record straight.’

A BBC spokesman last night defended its coverage, saying: ‘Our coverage suggests a possible range and reflects that No10 has now “played down reports”. We continue to report on Brexit developments in an impartial way and are confident in the sourcing of our journalism.’