BBC chief Tim Davie issues warning to staff about 'anti-semitic behaviour by people who worked with us' in internal email

BBC boss Tim Davie accuses staff of 'antisemitic behaviour' in leaked memo

BBC boss Tim Davie has issued a warning to staff about antisemitism in the corporation.

In an internal email sent to all staff, the Director-General says the BBC has been ‘alerted to some antisemitic behaviour by people who worked with us’.

It is the first time bosses have acknowledged they have an issue with antisemitic staff since the October 7 terror attacks in Israel.

Mr Davie’s remarks are thought to have been sparked in part by the behaviour of Dawn Queva, a BBC3 scheduling coordinator who posted a string of antisemitic comments on Facebook. She was subsequently sacked by the BBC.

BBC Boss Tim Davie (pictured) has admonished staff over their ‘antisemitic behaviour’ according to a leaked internal email seen by The Daily Mail

Tim Davie’s internal memo to BBC staff about anti-antisemitism within the corporation

In internal email sent to all staff, the Director-General says the BBC has been ‘alerted to some antisemitic behaviour by people who worked with us’

Mr Davie’s remarks are thought to have been sparked in part by the behaviour of Dawn Queva (pictured), a BBC3 scheduling coordinator who posted a string of antisemitic comments on Facebook

Among the messages posted by Queva was one where she described the Holocaust as the ‘holohoax’ and she also branded Jewish people an ‘invader coloniser species’.

In the email Mr Davie references the ‘difficult and demanding’ period for staff as they ‘cover events in the Middle East and their repercussions around the world’, and writes: ‘As an organisation, we must stand united against any form of abuse, prejudice or intolerance.

‘As many of you may have seen, sadly in recent weeks we have been alerted to some antisemitic behaviour by people who worked with us.

‘I want to be clear that there can be no place at the BBC for racist abuse of any kind whether towards our Jewish colleagues or indeed colleagues from any background or belief.

‘Any form of antisemitism, Islamophobia or racist abuse is abhorrent, and we will always act whenever it occurs.’

Since October 7 the BBC has faced repeated criticism about its handling of the Gaza war and its attitude towards the Jewish community, both in its coverage and among individual staff members.

In October the corporation had ‘reminded’ the head of its Asian Network radio service of his ‘responsibilities’ to impartiality after he reposted tweets which described Israel’s response to the Hamas attacks as ‘genocide’.

Ahmed Hussain, who has been in charge of the station since 2020, was also said to have reposted messages calling into question allegations that the terror group beheaded babies.

Also in October, six reporters and a freelance journalist who work for its Arabic news service were said to have shared comments comparing the terrorist group to freedom fighters. All of the journalists had been taken off air while the BBC investigated.

Last month, a group of at least 22 Jewish BBC staff members submitted formal complains about the cooperation’s workplace culture, social media practices and coverage of the Middle East.

And this week the BBC was criticised for broadcasting episodes of The Apprentice starring former NHS doctor Asif Munaf who had been accused of making ‘a stream of anti-Jewish’ comments on social media.

His comments included calling Zionism a ‘satanic cult’ and boasting about compiling a ‘list of sadistic doctors’ who were ‘supporting the Zionist genocide’.

Responding to Mr Davie’s email, a Jewish BBC staff member who asked to remain anonymous accused the Director-General of paying lip service to the BBC’s antisemitism problem without taking meaningful action.

They said: ‘I don’t believe him. I guess it’s good to see it in writing but it makes me want to cry that it’s just in writing and not in practice.’

Earlier this week the BBC was criticised for broadcasting episodes of The Apprentice starring former NHS doctor Asif Munaf (pictured) who had been accused of making ‘a stream of anti-Jewish’ comments on social media

A spokesperson for Campaign Against Antisemitism said: ‘After years of denial and gaslighting of the Jewish community, this is a welcome admission from the BBC’s Director-General that the Corporation has an antisemitism problem.

‘This admission is long-overdue, and comes in the wake of continuing reports of Jewish BBC staff feeling frightened at work.

‘Tim Davie promises that the BBC will ‘always act whenever [antisemitism] occurs’ but given the BBC’s abject failures in the past, we will have to judge the Corporation by its actions not its words. Until matters do improve, we are offering free legal representation to all BBC staff affected by anti-Jewish racism.

‘Additionally, we will continue to monitor the BBC’s output, which has been so extremely inaccurate and inflammatory at times that we fear that it has fuelled antisemitism in our country.’

Former director of BBC television Danny Cohen, who in November slammed the national broadcaster for being ‘institutionally antisemitic’, said he was relieved that Davie had ‘at last acknowledged that the BBC has a problem with antisemitism’.

He added: ‘The evidence is irrefutable. It has taken months too long for this acknowledgement to happen.

‘It’s a significant management failure on racism which has had a damaging and distressing impact on British Jews.

‘I’m sure that the Jewish community won’t find much comfort in this email. Actions are what matter.’

The BBC declined to comment on the email but confirmed it was sent.