BBC ‘should pay bill’ over presenters’ tax advice

The BBC should be liable for the tax bills of presenters encouraged to funnel salaries via personal service companies, a Tory MP has suggested.

Damian Collins, the chairman of the digital, culture, media and sport select committee, said it would be “a real scandal” if the BBC was proved to have forced presenters to be paid as freelancers. More than 100 presenters are being investigated by HMRC.

In a recent case, Christa Ackroyd, former presenter of the regional Look North programme, was told she had underpaid her taxes by £419,151.

A tax tribunal accepted that Ms Ackroyd was following BBC advice when she used the company.