The Sun today published multiple pictures of sleeping journalists in the main BBC New Broadcasting House newsroom as an MP said: “It’s extraordinary licence fee payers are paying for people to have a nice kip at work.”
The pictures were taken by a BBC insider and supplied to The Sun via agency SWNS. The source told the paper that during a 12-hour night shift some staff do around an hour of work.
They said: “You can look around and there are three or four people in a row with their feet up and soundly asleep.”
The pictures were taken over a period of four years and include one member of staff with an eye-mask on and another with a flat cap draped over his eyes (full story here).
All ten sleeping night-shifters pictured by The Sun are men.
The source said: “There are far too many managers so once they have delegated, there isn’t anything for them to do — so they go to sleep or watch Netflix.”
They added: “We get an hour and a half break but some people take the piss.”
Conservative MP Peter Bone told The Sun: “Someone at the BBC must get to grips with this.”
BBC News employs around 8,000 people, including 5,500 journalists. The BBC has an annual budget of £4.9bn a year, of which £3.7bn comes from taxpayers via the licence fee.
A BBC spokesperson said: “This is a misleading story about people working a long night shift. When they take a break, whether they walk around the block, go for a cup of tea or just simply rest, that’s surely up to them. The BBC is hugely grateful to its journalists who work through the night to make sure the country has the best possible news service when it wakes up in the morning.”
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