Minister demands probe over why wrong flag used on news show

STORMONT’S FIRST Minister has demanded an investigation into how the wrong flag was used to represent Northern Ireland on BBC Breakfast.

Arlene Foster made the call after the flag of the Irish Republic was used in the graphic illustrating differing travel quarantine restrictions in place in the different UK regions during yesterday morning’s show.

Mrs Foster’s DUP party branded the incident “disgraceful”.

At the end of the programme, presenter Naga Munchetty apologised for the error, saying: “We would like to apologise for a mistake we made earlier in the programme. In a graphic sequence explaining the differing travel quarantine rules around the nations of the UK we mistakenly showed the wrong flag for Northern Ireland.”

Mrs Foster welcomed the apology but urged the BBC’s new director general Tim Davie to look into it. She tweeted: “@ BBCBreakfast were right to apologise swiftly but the BBC DG needs to investigate the editorial process that allowed the inaccurate graphic to air. Very poor.”

The DUP said one of its MPs, Ian Paisley, had emailed Mr Davie

following the error to demand that an apology be offered.

It came the day after Mr Davie warned staff over their use of social media, saying sharing their opinions online could harm the broadcaster’s reputation for impartiality. Addressing staff at the BBC’s Cardiff office, he said

“If you want to be an opinionated columnist or a partisan campaigner on social media then that is a valid choice, but you should not be working at the BBC.”

He went on to tell them: “Our research shows that too many perceive us to be shaped by a particular perspective.”