Barrister probing BBC chairman appointment re-posted Johnson criticism

2023-02-11

Barrister probing the appointment of BBC chairman after Boris Johnson loan furore shared articles critical of the former Prime Minister and made anti-Brexit posts on social media

Adam Heppinstall KC re-posted comments suggesting Mr Johnson had not upheld his own ministerial code
Also reposted letter from The Guardian saying PM ‘flouted his own laws and rules’

The barrister investigating the appointment of the BBC chairman amid claims he helped arrange a loan for Boris Johnson shared critical posts online about the former prime minister.

Adam Heppinstall KC, who is charged with ruling whether Richard Sharp’s selection was above board, re-posted comments suggesting Mr Johnson had not upheld his own ministerial code.

Separately his Twitter account re-posted a letter from The Guardian newspaper that said the PM ‘flouted his own laws and rules’.

‘Anger doesn’t even touch the sides of this pathetic excuse for a man,’ it read.

Screen grab taken from Parliament TV of BBC chairman Richard Sharp appearing before the Commons Digital, Culture, Media and Sport

His account also tweeted criticism of red tape created by Brexit in March 2021 and three months later it re-posted messages which were critical of the then health secretary Matt Hancock.

Adam Heppinstall KC (pictured), who is charged with ruling whether Richard Sharp’s selection was above board, re-posted comments suggesting Boris Johnson had not upheld his own ministerial code

Mr Heppinstall’s posts, first reported by The Daily Telegraph, led Mr Johnson’s allies to question whether he will be an independent arbiter. Tory MP Michael Fabricant said: ‘Judges, whether in court or in civil service investigations, need to be seen to be fair and neutral. This casts a dark shadow on the neutrality of the process.’

The investigation into Mr Sharp’s appointment began after he was accused of helping to arrange an £800,000 loan for Mr Johnson while he was prime minister.

Mr Sharp admitted last week that he acted as an ‘introduction agency’, but insisted he did not ‘facilitate’ the loan agreement.

Critics allege there is a conflict of interest as Mr Sharp was later appointed chairman of the BBC.

A spokesman for the Office of the Commissioner for Public Appointments said Mr Heppinstall was ‘independent of the Government and the civil service’. Mr Heppinstall declined to comment.

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