Latest news with #inappropriate behaviour
National Post
a day ago
- National Post
Military commander steps down as probe into brigade group's social media posts continues
Article content Wright said in a July 16 message to army personnel that he was taking steps to address the 'inappropriate behaviour' in the Blue Hackle Facebook group. 'As of 16 July 2025, the Commanding Officer of the Cameron Highlanders of Ottawa has been temporarily removed from his position and all individuals involved will be provided procedural fairness in accordance with the applicable policies,' Wright said in his statement to the army. Article content Wright noted in his statement that the Canadian Army started a summary investigation to examine the alleged unethical conduct of any currently serving Canadian Army members who were part of the online group. Article content Military police were originally provided with videos and screenshots of the Blue Hackle Mafia material. Instead, military police turned over the investigation to the Cameron Highlanders. A reserve force captain who serves with some of those involved in the Blue Hackle Mafia was assigned to investigate their behaviour. Article content After the Ottawa Citizen provided Wright with the screenshots of some of the Blue Hackle Mafia material on June 24, military police opened a new investigation into the group. Article content The Cameron Highlanders of Ottawa (Duke of Edinburgh's Own) serve as the city of Ottawa's official regiment, according to the Canadian Forces. The regiment is tasked, as needed, to provide ceremonial guards of honour for visiting dignitaries and for national ceremonies and events. The reserve unit operates out of the Cartier Square Drill Hall on Queen Elizabeth Driveway. Article content In his statement sent to army personnel, Wright pointed out that the organization 'will continue to ensure that our culture reflects the values and ethics of the Canadian Armed Forces, and I expect the chain of command across the Canadian Army to deal immediately with any inappropriate behaviour that deviates from those values and ethics.' Article content 'This incident has damaged the reputation of the Canadian Army at a time when we are engaged in important modernization work as part of a ready, resilient, and relevant Canadian Armed Forces,' he added. Article content Article content The Ottawa Citizen reported that the soldiers on the Facebook page knew what they were doing was wrong but their focus was on not getting caught. They warned each other not to take photos of the wild antics that were taking place at the Cartier Square Drill Hall.
Times
15-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Times
BBC can be ‘unbearable' place to work, chairman warns
The BBC continues to be an 'unbearable' place to work for some staff amid ongoing examples of inappropriate behaviour and abuses of power, its chairman has warned. In his opening statement to the BBC annual report, Samir Shah said the corporation is a 'wonderful place' for the majority of its 21,000 staff but 'there are pockets in the organisation where this is not the case'. Shah said: 'There are still places where powerful individuals — on and off-screen — can abuse that power to make life for their colleagues unbearable.' Shah mentioned the 'shocking revelations' about the disgraced former presenter Huw Edwards, which led to a workplace culture review that found that the BBC had an issue with a minority of 'untouchable' individuals but did not have a toxic culture overall. 'The report emphasised the importance of acting with speed, to be bolder and braver in our actions and to dial up our risk appetite in taking visible steps to stamp out unacceptable and inappropriate behaviours,' he said. On Monday, a report into Gregg Wallace, the MasterChef presenter, substantiated 45 out of 83 allegations against him, including one incident of unwanted physical contact. It was published on the same day as an internal investigation into a BBC documentary about Gaza, which was ruled to have breached editorial guidelines by failing to provide viewers with 'critical information' that its teenage narrator was the son of a Hamas official. Shah said that the film had 'undermined trust' in the BBC and had damaged the corporation's reputation. 'The journalistic impulse to tell such a story was a good one, but trust for our audiences is critical to the BBC. And the Gaza film undermined that trust,' he said. Tim Davie, the director-general of the BBC, said trust in BBC News had risen year-on-year but warned that this could not be taken for granted amid a wider global crisis of confidence. 'It requires constant diligence and care. And this was a year which saw the reputation of the BBC damaged by serious failings in the making of the programme Gaza: How to Survive a Warzone,' he said. Davie added: 'It was important that the BBC took full responsibility for those failings and apologised for them. The broader context for the BBC is the crisis of trust that is now growing both here and around the world. It is a crisis which I believe risks serious consequences for our society, our economy, and our democratic stability and security.' Presenter pay is another controversial topic for the BBC, which collected £3.8 billion of licence fee income, up £183 million on the previous year as a result of the £10 price increase to £169.50 in April 2024. The top pay table for last year was headed by Gary Lineker and Zoe Ball, both of whom have since left the BBC. Lineker, the former Match of the Day host, stepped down in May after apologising for sharing an antisemitic post on social media. He was paid up to £1.35 million. Ball saw her earnings almost halve to £520,000 for presenting 125 editions of the BBC Radio 2 breakfast show, down from £950,000 for 200 last year. Match of the Day pundit Alan Shearer's BBC earnings leapt from £380,000 to £440,000 after his Euro 2024 duties, making him the third highest paid star. Greg James, the Radio 1 presenter, was paid up to £430,000 for hosting 215 breakfast shows. With no major men's football tournament on the BBC this summer, James is expected to become the broadcaster's highest paid star in next year's report.
The Guardian
14-07-2025
- Entertainment
- The Guardian
Report into Gregg Wallace's behaviour upholds 45 claims against ex-BBC presenter
A report into the behaviour of Gregg Wallace has substantiated 45 allegations made against the former BBC presenter, including claims of inappropriate sexual language and one incident of unwelcome physical contact. A seven-month investigation into a series of allegations against the MasterChef presenter covered 83 allegations against him, with more than half substantiated by the investigation team. Most of the substantiated allegations related to inappropriate sexual language and humour. However, an overview of the report said a 'smaller number of allegations of other inappropriate language and being in a state of undress were also substantiated'. The production company Banijay and the BBC said the number of sustained allegations made Wallace's return to MasterChef untenable, despite his recent diagnosis of autism. Wallace has already admitted using inappropriate language, but claimed to have been cleared of 'the most serious and sensational accusations made against me'. The BBC confirmed Wallace would not be returning to its screens and admitted 'opportunities were missed' to deal with his behaviour. The report, overseen by the law firm Lewis Silkin, was ordered by MasterChef's producers Banijay last year after BBC News said it had heard allegations of inappropriate sexual comments and inappropriate behaviour by 13 people who worked with Wallace across a 17-year period. At that point, he stood back from his MasterChef role. The investigation heard evidence from 78 witnesses, including 41 complainants. All the report's findings were linked to allegations made in connection to MasterChef. It found the 'vast majority' of the 83 allegations it heard (94%) related to behaviour that was said to have occurred between 2005 and 2018. The report summary revealed that 10 other standalone allegations were made against other people, two of which were substantiated – one relating to swearing and one to racist language. It found that 11 complaints or concerns had been raised about Wallace's behaviour between 2005 and last year. Some were raised with Banijay, others with the BBC. The majority were dealt with informally. 'The production company undertook an investigation into an allegation in 2015 and understood the complainant was happy with the outcome,' the report said. 'The BBC intervened in response to a complaint in 2017, following which Mr Wallace was warned of the need to change his behaviour. Mr Wallace took steps to heed that warning.'
