Golden “hello” raises questions in Parliament

STV’s chief executive has been asked to explain how he can justify the proposed redundancy of more than 50 staff whilst receiving a remuneration package of more than £1 million.

STV announced plans to close its loss-making STV2 channel and restructure its news operation, putting a total of 59 jobs at risk, in a bid to save £1 million a year but their Chief Executive received a £187,000 “welcome payment” when he joined in January, along with worth £666,000 in addition to his basic salary of £400,000.

He is now been asked to appear before Holyrood’s Culture Committee and explain himself. The committee convener said: “The proposals recently announced by STV would mean major changes to the structure of a national broadcaster, particularly affecting how news is delivered across Scotland. The entire committee was concerned about what these proposals will mean in practice and we will use the Chief Executive’s evidence to find out more about the proposed job losses as well as the sale of local TV licences.

Staff at STV are currently balloting on taking industrial action.