Sammy Wilson poses own questions to BBC over face mask spending

Sammy Wilson has accused the BBC of having double standards, claiming the corporation refused to declare how much it has spent on face masks, despite revealing that the East Antrim MP had claimed expenses for the same items.

In November, the BBC published details of how much Mr Wilson had been reimbursed (£48), however, he told the press that the masks were being provided free of charge to members of the public visiting his constituency office.

The MP, who has been accused of breaching Covid guidelines on face coverings on a number of occasions, has since challenged the BBC to reveal the cost to the public purse of its own face mask provision.

Yesterday, he said while the BBC had made “derogatory comments” about his own expenditure, the corporation on has “been spending extensively, not just on face masks but on bleepers which alert BBC staff if they come within 2m of each other”.

Mr Wilson said: “It is alleged that the cost of this and other equipment has been extremely high, but typical of the BBC they have refused to be transparent in their own dealings.

“In a response which I have received from Tim Davie, the director general of the BBC, the BBC refused to reveal the cost of the equipment which was purchased, though has admitted that it has purchased proximity devices, hiding behind commercial confidentiality.”

A BBC spokesperson, said: “The overwhelming majority of our staff are working from home, but for those needed in a BBC building to keep our services on air through the pandemic we have measures in place to help them stay safe.

“We make no apology for protecting hard working staff against the virus – they are doing a difficult job and it is the right and responsible thing to do.”