BBC Radio 4’s Evan Davis branded Downing Street as “Drowning Street” during a discussion about parties at Number 10 on the station’s PM show. But his comments sparked a backlash from listeners who complained about the anti-Boris Johnson slip.
He told listeners: “In the last few minutes, you know Rishi Sunak is at a press breifing at Drowning… Downing Street.”
A few minutes later following a backlash, Mr Evans appeared to apologise to listeners for the slip-up.
He said: “Several of you saying I referred to Drowning Street not Downing Street just now!
“That is entirely a slip! Do not read anything into that!”
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The mishap comes amid yet more accusations of bias at the taxpayer funded corporation this week.
On Tuesday, Newsnight’s Emily Maitlis was forced to apologise after retweeting a Twitter comment from former international development secretary Rory Stewart which appeared to break BBC impartiality rules.
In the Tweet Mr Stewart slammed the Tories for rhetoric similar to the style of Donald Trump.
Following the slip up, Ms Maitlis said: “I have deleted my earlier retweet of the below and would like to apologise for the hurt I have caused.
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“For the avoidance of doubt I accept I should have added extra context — it was retweeted in haste — and was wrong to do.”
The incident is the third time the Newsnight anchor has torn up BBC impartiality rules in recent years.
The BBC’s impartiality rules state: “If a member of staff repeatedly likes or shares, without comment, content reflecting a particular point of view on a matter of public controversy…
“It might create the impression that individual agrees with that view.”
It adds: “The BBC has always denied allegations of bias.
“And in its editorial guidelines the cooperation states it is “impartial, seeking to reflect the views and experiences of our audiences.”
Explaining the BBC’s recruitment process to ensure impartiality, a spokeswoman for the Department of Media said: “It is an open recruitment process and all public appointments are subject to a robust and fair selection criteria.”
The BBC’s Director-General Tim Davie has previously pledged to crack down on bias at the Beeb, specifically on staff Twitter accounts.
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