BBC accused of pay 'gagging order'

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The National Audit Office (NAO) revealed the discrepancy in a report, commissioned by the BBC Trust, into the efficiency of the corporation's radio output.

It also discovered major variations in costs between apparently similar radio programmes on the BBC's various stations, including that music programmes on Radio 2 were 54% more expensive than those on Radio 1 and more than double the cost of those on Radio 3.

The BBC refused to give the watchdog access to details of presenters' salaries without an agreement not to disclose the information. The head of the NAO, Auditor General Tim Burr, declined to enter into a deal which would place "constraints" on its ability to report his findings.

Tory MP Edward Leigh, chairman of the Public Accounts Committee, called on the BBC to explain the comparatively high costs and described the non-disclosure of presenters' salaries as "scandalous".

He added: "This is equivalent to the BBC trying to impose a gagging order on the NAO and goes to show the utter inadequacy of the current arrangements for Parliamentary scrutiny of this publicly funded organisation."

The NAO found that the "bulk" of programme costs was taken up by staff remuneration. On breakfast shows, 77% of staff costs related to presenters. On drive-time programmes, the proportion was 79%.

The independent watchdog said the BBC had found £11.7 million of efficiency savings in the three years to March 2008, more than its £11.6 million target.

In declining to disclose presenters' salaries, the BBC told the NAO it was constrained by the Data Protection Act as well as confidentiality clauses in some staff contracts.