Fury as Gary Lineker tops BBC wage checklist for sixth 12 months working with £1.35m pay

Tory MPs hit out on the BBC after Gary Lineker was revealed to be its highest-paid star for the sixth 12 months working.

The Match of the Day host – who sparked an impartiality row earlier this 12 months over criticism of the Government’s small boats crackdown – was paid between £1,350,000 and £1,354,999 in 2022/23, in response to the company’s annual report.

Conservative MP Marco Longhi instructed the massive sum ought to as a substitute be used to fund free TV licences for pensioners and branded the BBC “out of touch”.

Meanwhile, fellow Tory MP Philip Davies urged the broadcaster to provide Lineker’s job to an “up-and-coming journalist at a lower cost”.

Mr Longhi, who represents Dudley North, instructed the Express: “The BBC is so out of contact with the inhabitants that it can not see how sickening this pay stage is.

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“Why not save all this money and fund older people’s licence fees? Why not offer this role up to young presenters and give them a chance?

“The licence fee is a tax on TVs. As such taxpayer’s money should never be used to fund, directly or indirectly, political viewpoints.

“The BBC’s complete failure to ensure impartiality in recent years makes these payments to Gary Lineker even more offensive to taxpayers.”

Shipley MP Mr Davies, who’s a GB News presenter, added: “Being a professional virtue signaller is clearly very lucrative.

“Lord knows why the BBC are so determined to pay him such a colossal salary from licence fee payers’ money.

“This is a prime example of taking money from poor people and giving it to rich people – something that Lineker claims to be opposed to. He should be judged by his actions, not his words.

“The BBC should give an opportunity to present Match of the Day to an up-and-coming journalist at a lower cost.

“The BBC seem to forget that people were watching Match of the Day long before Lineker started presenting it, and they will be watching it long after he has left.”

Pundit Lineker was the only BBC star to earn more than £1million last year, which was for work including Match Of The Day, coverage of the World Cup 2023 and Sports Personality Of The Year.

The former England footballer first topped the list for 2017/18 with a salary of £1,750,000 to £1,759,999. In 2020 it was announced he had taken a voluntary pay cut.

Zoe Ball continues to be the broadcaster’s second highest-paid talent and the highest-paid woman with a salary of £980,000 to £984,999 for her Radio 2 breakfast show and a Radio 2 tribute to Terry Wogan.

Lineker’s Match Of The Day colleague Alan Shearer is in third place with pay of £445,000 to £449,99.

Huw Edwards is the corporation’s highest-paid newsreader, with a bracket of £435,000 to £439,999, putting him fourth on the list.

Radio star Stephen Nolan, Question Time host Fiona Bruce, Radio 1 presenter Greg James, former Radio 2 host Ken Bruce, Desert Island Discs presenter Lauren Laverne and newsreader Sophie Raworth complete the top 10.

John O’Connell, chief executive of the TaxPayers’ Alliance, said: “If the BBC wants to pay these huge sums, they should move to a subscription model and axe the tax.”

The Defund the BBC group additionally referred to as for the licence charge to be axed.

Campaign director Rebecca Ryan mentioned: “It is time now for the TV licence charge to be axed and for the BBC to be made to face by itself deserves – or not.”

The salaries of the company’s prime expertise have been unveiled whereas the BBC is below strain over allegations an unnamed presenter paid a youngster for express photos.

Tim Davie, director-general of the BBC, mentioned: “I’m happy with the content material we’ve got delivered – the perfect of the BBC – from royal programming to fantastic sporting moments and protection of the Ukraine struggle. We have seen this once more just lately, with Eurovision, the Coronation and Glastonbury.

“It stays a interval of change, monetary pressures and nice competitors within the media market. Our job isn’t all the time straightforward and we’ve got to make some tough selections.

“But these are challenges we should embrace as we all know that the BBC is required now greater than ever, in an age of polarisation and rising disinformation.”

Additional reporting by David Dubas-Fisher from Reach Plc’s Data Unit