A senior journalist who was part of the original Newsnight expose into Jimmy Saville child-abuse allegations warned the BBC director general not to cover-up why the report was dropped. The leaked email suggests BBC chief George Entwistle ignored a pressing plea from investigative reporter Liz MacKean, about his âmisleading statementsâ regarding the content of the cancelled programme. He declined to speak to Ms MacKean about the matter despite her urgent email sent 12 days ago but has since spoken to senior BBC management about her version of events. Jimmy Savile has been described as one of the most prolific child sex abusers of all time More than 200 people have come forward to say they were abused by the TV star In the email to the director general, seen by The Independent, she said: âWorst of all has been what seems like a concerted effort to make it appear that our story was about something else, something that could be dropped and forgotten ahead of fulsome tribute programmes. It is this which seems to be fuelling the damaging claims of a cover-up.â The damaging leaked email comes ahead of a Panorama investigation into Jimmy Savile, due to air on Monday, which is expected to look into why the BBC dropped its original Newsnight report on the TV star last year. But Mr Entwistle has refused to be interviewed for the programme - citing legal advice that he should restrict his statements to the police, official inquiries and a commons committee hearing on Tuesday. MPs are now demanding that every BBC email linked to the decision by Newsnight to drop an investigation into Jimmy Savileâs abuse of teenage girls should be made public. Correspondence leading all the way to the top of the corporation should be disclosed in a bid to retain public trust, they insisted. It follows the emergence of a leaked e-mail which appears to cast more doubt on the BBCâs stated reason on why the current affairs show dropped the programme. More... How Savile even abused his own sisters grandchild: His great niece reveals the scandals most sickening twist yet - and how he bribed his sister to cover it up Arrests loom as police investigate Savileâs âlivingâ accomplices and those who covered-up the sex scandal as more than 200 victims are identified
Firing off 1,000 letters a year, the obsession of Disgusted of Highgrove By Geoffrey Levy and Richard Kay PUBLISHED: 17 October 2012 His favourite government minister of the moment is Greg Barker, whose responsibilities at the Department of Energy include the divisive issue of climate change. His favourite current topic: the importance of green and renewable energy. The Prince of Walesâs pen, scratching away in black ink, is as busy as ever. At peak periods, his passionate words have poured out at the rate of 1,000 letters a year to ministers and other public figures. Until now, it has certainly never occurred to him that his one-man letter-writing factory might have to shut down because of the risk of sacrificing the crucial âpolitical neutralityâ of his future role as king. This is the reason put forward by Attorney General Dominic Grieve for overturning a decision of the High Court to allow the contents of 27 letters penned to ministers more than eight years ago to be made public. Yesterday friends ridiculed the notion that Prince Charles, just a month short of his 64th birthday, should start keeping his opinions to himself. They know heâll never do it. As the prince himself has said: âThe trouble is, I always feel that unless I rush about doing things and trying to help furiously, I will not (and the monarchy will not) be seen to be relevant and I will be considered a mere playboy.â It is too easy to believe that had he come to the throne as a young man, and not still been waiting as heir apparent after 61 years, he would never have needed to justify his existence by constant intrusion into public and political issues