The
BBC director general Greg Dyke was forced to resign last week following
scathing criticism of the organisation contained in the controversial Hutton
report.
The
inquiry into the death of weapons expert David Kelly ruled that BBC editorial
systems were defective and that managers had failed to react properly to
Government criticism.
The
report, released last week, cleared the Government of exaggerating intelligence
in its dossier on Iraq’s weapons of mass destruction.
Although
the report also cleared Kelly’s employer, the Ministry of Defence (MoD), the
whole affair raises questions about the way personnel departments deal with
staff who talk to the press or blow the whistle.
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It
also has implications for employers’ duty of care towards staff, as Hutton
ruled the MoD was at fault in the way it dealt with Kelly once his name was
made public.
Kelly
took his own life after being revealed as the sole source behind the BBC story
claiming the Government ‘sexed up’ its weapons dossier.
