Credit: University of Salford In a report published today by the Culture, Media and Sport Committee, the broadcaster was criticised for the appointment of Guy Bradshaw, with decisions such as this said to "lower the esteem of the BBC, its senior management and the Trust in the eyes of the public and its own staff".
In a statement the BBC said it carried out an internal audit which was satisfied that Bradshaw was "fulfilling his duties as migration manager, that he had the necessary migration and project experience and that he continues to be an essential member of the team as the move to Salford Quays begins".
The report also revealed a proposal was put forward by the government for the BBC during licence fee settlement negotiations "to become a vehicle" for "government messaging", in relation to information produced by the Central Office of Information.
Director general Mark Thompson and outgoing chairman of the BBC Trust Sir Michael Lyons allegedly told the committee that the broadcaster felt this crossed its "red lines".
The public information broadcasts proposal was "a fundamental and wholly unacceptable attack on the BBC and one we'd fight tooth and nail", Lyons added.
"They explained that this proposal too was raised several times during the negotiating process before the Government finally dropped the idea," the report says.
"We sent the Secretary of State specific questions inviting him to provide his own detailed account of the negotiation process. However, he responded in more general terms.
"He did confirm, though, that: 'During the course of discussions, we discussed several issues, including the scale and scope of the BBC's commercial activities and the future carriage of public information broadcasts'."
The committee also used the report to show its support for the reversal of "some or all" of the planned cuts to funding of the BBC World Service, as already recommended by the Foreign Affairs Committee in its own report on the issue.
"There is a risk that domestic services and content might be adversely affected if additional BBC funding is diverted to the World Service and we undertake to monitor very closely how the BBC strikes a balance between these important but competing claims.
"A formal concordat between the Foreign Office and the BBC World Service might provide helpful clarity of roles so long as it did not undermine BBC editorial independence."
In a government response to the Foreign Affairs Committee report foreign secretary William Hague yesterday rejected the call for a reversal of the cuts.
He added that the government does not consider the budget of the BBC World Service should be protected from the requirement to make cuts to help reduce the fiscal deficit.
Reflecting on other implications of the BBC's negotiations with the government, the culture, media and sport committee said it remains "unclear" as to how Welsh-language broadcaster S4C can retain its independence.
Under the proposed arrangements, S4C's funding will move from a direct Department for Culture, Media and Sport grant to funding through the BBC licence fee.
"We do, however, find it extraordinary that the Government and the BBC, which is fiercely protective of its own independence, should find it acceptable to agree a change in the funding and governance arrangements for another statutorily independent broadcaster, S4C, without the latter having any involvement, say or even knowledge of the deal until it has been done."
In conclusion the report said the financial terms of the settlement appear "to be reasonable" but added that some of the additional responsibilities taken on by the BBC "widen the scope of licence fee spending beyond any previous interpretation of the BBC's mission and purposes".
Image by University of Salford on Flickr. Some rights reserved.
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