Complaint
A listener complained about the accuracy of a report on the salary of the Chief Executive of Centrica. The ECU considered whether the programme met the relevant standards set out in the Editorial Guidelines.
Outcome
The complainant argued it was inaccurate and misleading to state that the Chief Executive considered himself incredibly fortunate “to take home a pay package worth £4.5 million last year” because it did not take account of deductions such as income tax. However the second sentence of the report made it clear Mr O’Shea was paid “£4.5 million last year before tax” and so the ECU saw no basis for concluding listeners would have been misled. In addition the ECU considered the comparison made between Mr O’Shea’s remuneration and the “average UK worker” to be a fair one, notwithstanding that other comparisons were possible.
Not Upheld