US President Donald Trump has continued his attacks on the BBC, accusing it of defrauding the public and saying he had an “obligation” to take legal action over the editing of a speech he made.
Director-general Tim Davie quit on Sunday amid a scandal over the editing of a speech by Trump before the attack on the US Capitol on January 6 2021.
Trump reiterated his threat of launching a billion-dollar lawsuit against the BBC during an interview on Fox News.
He said: “I think I have an obligation to do it, you can’t allow people to do that.
“I guess I have to. They defrauded the public and they’ve admitted it. This is within one of our great allies, supposedly our great ally.
“That’s a pretty sad event. They actually changed my January 6 speech, which was a beautiful speech, which was a very calming speech, and they made it sound radical.
“They showed me the results of how they butchered it up. It was very dishonest, and the head man quit, and a lot of the other people quit.”
A legal letter, from Trump counsel Alejandro Brito, has demanded that “false, defamatory, disparaging, and inflammatory statements” made about Trump be retracted immediately.
The letter says if the BBC “does not comply” by Friday, Trump will be “left with no alternative but to enforce his legal and equitable rights, all of which are expressly reserved and are not waived, including by filing legal action for no less than 1,000,000,000 dollars in damages”.
Sir Keir Starmer has not spoken to Trump about his threatened legal action, Downing Street indicated.
Trump’s comments come after Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy said the BBC must “renew its mission for the modern age” and warned MPs attacking the broadcaster to “consider just what is at stake”.
The once-a-decade process of reviewing the broadcaster’s charter will begin shortly, with Nandy saying it would ensure a BBC which is “fiercely independent” and “genuinely accountable” to the public it serves.
She told the Commons: “There is a fundamental difference between raising serious concerns over editorial failings and members of this House launching a sustained attack on the institution itself, because the BBC is not just a broadcaster, it is a national institution that belongs to us all.”
The BBC’s charter expires at the end of 2027, and the process of reviewing it is now set to begin with the organisation at the centre of a storm following the resignations of Mr Davie and Deborah Turness, who quit as chief executive of BBC News.
Nandy told MPs: “Together, we will ensure the BBC is sustainably funded, commands the public’s trust and continues to drive growth, good jobs, skills and creativity across every region and nation of the UK.
“In an era in which trust is fraying and truth is contested across our nation, it will ensure the BBC remains fiercely independent and is genuinely accountable to the public it serves.”
Amid the debate over the public broadcaster’s impartiality, several Labour backbenchers called on Nandy to remove Sir Robbie Gibb, a former political adviser to Theresa May when she was prime minister, from the BBC Board.
Some on the left of the party believe Mr Gibb was instrumental in forcing the resignations of Mr Davie and Ms Turness when they may have otherwise stayed on.
Answering a question from Labour MP Sarah Owen (Luton North), Nandy said: “The charter sets a strict legal threshold that must be met before dismissal of a board member, and so I am unable to pursue the course of action that she suggests.”
Mr Davie told BBC staff the corporation has to “stand up for our journalism”, insisting it will control its own narrative, which “will not just be given by our enemies”.
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