The BBC has released an apology to the parents who made a complaint about BBC presenter Huw Edwards in regards to the newsreader paying for explicit photos of their then-17-year-old - with BBC boss Tim Davie saying at the time that there was no “allegation of criminality”.
The scandal unfolded in July 2023, with the network launching a review into its complaints procedure following the incident. However, the original complaint was made in Cardiff on 18 May, but the case wasn’t escalated at the time, “meaning that there was no opportunity for wider visibility of the case within the BBC”.
The BBC’s group chief operating officer, Leigh Tavaziva, said that there had been “shortcomings” in the complaint, explaining: “The initial complaint in this case was not escalated quickly enough to senior management and we have apologised to the complainant for this.”
The company has claimed that it will improve procedures regarding complaints including adding an escalation mechanism.
Additionally, the report found that some employees were concerned about coming forward with complaints, with it reading: “These employees said they have lower levels of confidence in how robustly the complaint will be handled if it is a grievance relating to another member of staff or talent, particularly where there is an actual or perceived power discrepancy between the complainant and the subject of the complaint.”
Huw’s wife, Vicky Flind, confirmed that he was the presenter behind the incident after intense speculation on social media. In a statement to PA News Agency at the time, she said: "In light of the recent reporting regarding the 'BBC Presenter' I am making this statement on behalf of my husband Huw Edwards, after what have been five extremely difficult days for our family.
“I am doing this primarily out of concern for his mental well-being and to protect our children. Huw is suffering from serious mental health issues. As is well documented, he has been treated for severe depression in recent years. The events of the last few days have greatly worsened matters, he has suffered another serious episode and is now receiving in-patient hospital care where he'll stay for the foreseeable future.
"Once well enough to do so, he intends to respond to the stories that have been published. To be clear Huw was first told that there were allegations being made against him last Thursday. In the circumstances and given Huw's condition I would like to ask that the privacy of my family and everyone else caught up in these upsetting events is respected. I know that Huw is deeply sorry that so many colleagues have been impacted by the recent media speculation. We hope this statement will bring that to an end.”
The subject of the complaint, who is now in their 20s, released a letter via their lawyer to the BBC, which read: “For the avoidance of doubt, nothing inappropriate or unlawful has taken place between our client and the BBC personality and the allegations reported in the Sun newspaper are ‘rubbish.’"
Huw was supported by former colleagues including John Simpson, World News Editor for the BBC, who wrote: “I feel so sorry for everyone involved in this: for the Edwards family, for the complainants, and for Huw himself. No criminal offences were committed, so it's a purely personal tragedy for everyone involved. Let's hope the press leave them all alone now.”
Dan Walker tweeted: “This is an awful situation & will come as a big shock to many. Huw Edwards is clearly not in a good place at the moment and this must be terrible for his family. I just hope that whoever needs help - on all sides of this - gets the time, space & support they need to heal.”