Britain's most famous newsreader yesterday pleaded guilty at Westminster Magistrates' Court to receiving 41 indecent images of children.
BBC boss Tim Davie has admitted that he knew Huw Edwards had been arrested over the most serious category of child porn images - yet continued to pay the paedophile presenter more than £200,000 until he resigned.
The 62-year-old received the pictures on WhatsApp from convicted paedophile, Alex Williams, between December 2020 and August 2021. Seven of them were category A images - the most serious classification - while 12 were category B and 22 were category C. BBC boss Tim Davie has admitted that he knew Huw Edwards had been arrested over the most serious level of child porn images
'When it comes to the decision we made in November, we were obviously faced with a difficult decision, and we considered it very carefully,' Mr Davie said. He said the BBC was 'not sitting on anything that I think we need to share with the police, or is of a serious nature that would make me feel that we hadn't followed up properly'.
Before Edwards resigned in April on medical advice, he was paid between £475,000 and £479,999 for the year 2023/24, according to the BBC's latest annual report. After his guilty plea on Wednesday, a BBC spokesperson said: 'In November 2023, whilst Mr Edwards was suspended, the BBC as his employer at the time was made aware in confidence that he had been arrested on suspicion of serious offences and released on bail whilst the police continued their investigation.
'Today we have learnt of the conclusion of the police process in the details as presented to the court. The Prime Minister also confirmed the Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy will hold urgent talks with the BBC director-general Tim Davie on Thursday. However, the fact Edwards has now admitted three charges of making indecent photographs - after he was sent 41 illegal images by convicted paedophile Alex Williams - will also likely raise serious questions of trust in figures at the BBC.
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