Sky’s Lewis Goodall to join BBC Newsnight as policy editor

Sky News political correspondent Lewis Goodall is joining Newsnight as the nightly BBC Two current affairs show’s policy editor.

Goodall left the BBC, where he was a producer and reporter for more than four years, to join Sky in 2017. He joins Newsnight in November this year.

Newsnight editor Esme Wren announced the move on Twitter today.

She said: “Lewis is an exceptional journalist bringing fresh insight and a rich knowledge of the political landscape, frequently tapping into his deep understanding of historical events and trends.”

Goodall tweeted that Newsnight is “a programme which is proving itself the place to be for making sense of our increasingly mad politics”.

He added: “I started my career there as a producer, a programme I watched and taught me so much about politics as a weird Westminster obsessed kid.

“To return as policy editor is a privilege (albeit a daunting one) and I’m very excited about it.”

But he said he was leaving Sky News “with a heavy heart”, adding: “It has the best politics team in Westminster. It is the imp in the machine of broadcast news with a unique spirit.

“They have given me opportunities I would have received nowhere else.British media is so enriched for its presence.”

Goodall follows Faisal Islam in moving from Sky to the BBC. Islam was Sky’s political editor for five years before joining the BBC as economics editor in April.

Picture: BBC