BBC pay report reveals salary details for corporation's top lawyers
BBC GC Sarah Jones listed as taking home £255,000, with head of commercial legal, Peter Ranyard, making £160,000
July 11, 2018 at 09:07 AM
3 minute read
The BBC's annual report, released today (11 July), has revealed the earnings of the broadcaster's top lawyers.
The report details the salaries paid to all of the BBC's biggest stars, listing compensation packages for all BBC executives and on-screen talent paid more than £150,000.
Two in-house lawyers are included on the list – group general counsel Sarah Jones and assistant GC and head of commercial legal Peter Ranyard.
Jones, who leads the BBC legal division as well as giving legal advice to senior management, earns £255,000 according to the report.
She has been group GC at the BBC since 2012, having joined from Allen & Overy in 1996. During her tenure, she has overseen various controversies including the aftermath of the Jimmy Savile abuse scandal.
Ranyard, who was last year listed as assistant GC but this year has the additional title of head of commercial legal, is paid a salary of £160,000.
His role includes giving advice to the broadcaster on regulatory matters as well as managing the BBC's commercial legal, fair trading and competition and technology legal teams. Ranyard joined the BBC in 2001 from legacy firm Pinsents, where he was a partner between 1998 and 2000.
Head of legal, Peter Farrell, is listed as earning between £150,000 and £159,999 but is not included in the separate list of staff earning more than £150,000.
This year's report has once again raised questions about the BBC's gender pay equality.
Claudia Winkleman is still the BBC's highest-paid woman, taking home between £370,000 and £379,999, however there are a dozen men paid more than Winkleman. These include Match of the Day presenter Gary Lineker who earns about £1.75m, BBC Radio 2 breakfast presenter Chris Evans (£1.6m-£1.669m), chat show presenter Graham Norton (£600,000-£609,000) and BBC News presenter Huw Edwards (£520,000-£529,999).
Winkleman also topped the pay for women last year, taking home between £450,000 and £499,999. Chris Evans was the highest-earning male star, earning more than Lineker this year with a wage of £2.2m-£2.25m.
Earlier today, the internal campaign group BBCWomen – which includes Today Programme host Mishal Husain – released a statement in which it said the report "shows how far the BBC still has to go in valuing women and men equally for their work".
Earlier this year, Legal Week reported that Mishcon de Reya employment partner Jennifer Millins is advising a group of about 10 senior female employees, including former BBC News China editor Carrie Gracie, over the BBC's gender pay gap.
Commenting on today's report, Millins said: "As this year's high earners list shows, pay equality at the BBC appears to remain an aspiration, not a reality. This is not only not good enough, it is unlawful.
"It is important to remember that the BBC's equal pay crisis affects women at all levels of the corporation. The high earners list only reflects the problem at the top end of the pay scale. Behind this are hundreds of women who are paid significantly less than those in the list, and whose equal pay concerns are no less acute."
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