Tory MPs furious at BBC 'rise' giving Lineker 'carte blanche'

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Tory MPs have expressed outrage at the 'descent' that sees Gary Lineker return to the BBC with no apology for his attack on the government's small boat crackdown Rishi Sunak.

Confirming that Lineker will return to Match of the Day, general manager Tim Davie said the presenter "will adhere to editorial guidelines" until a review of social media policy be completed.

But furious Tories said it gave Lineker "carte blanche" to say what he wanted after he was briefly suspended for a tweet comparing the language used to launch an asylum bill from Rishi Sunak to that of 1930s Nazi Germany.

Craig MacKinlay, MP for South Thanet, told The Independent< /em>: "The descent of the BBC with an apology and carte blanche to do what it wants on the social media is remarkable."

He added: "His eight million Twitter followers are on the back of his ongoing stardom due to his contract with the BBC - he can now apparently push his h highly political anti-government agenda and offend many people with impunity. I don't know of any other employer who would allow this."

Philip Davies, MP for Shipley, told The Independent the 'pathetic capitulation' would hasten the end of license fees "The BBC can no longer credibly claim that it believes in political impartiality and, more importantly, it has proven that it lacks the guts to enforce it."

He added: "This pathetic capitulation from the BBC is the beginning of the end for license fees. His epitaph will read "Gary Lineker - the man who destroyed BBC license fees". This is a decisive moment.

Tory MP David Jones said: 'That says more about the weakness of the chief executive', arguing that Lineker should be reinstated without a 'binding commitment to no longer engage in political tweeting' would let license fee payers down. »

Mr. MacKinlay, Mr Davies, Mr Jones and a few dozen other Common Sense Group Tory MPs had signed a letter demanding an apology from Lineker and the BBC - urging the corporation 'not to bend' over its suspension.

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MP Tom Hunt, deputy chairman of the Tory group, has urged the BBC not to use the review to allow independents like Lineker to 'hide behind' contracts and avoid impartiality rules .

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