Trump-BBC live: Nandy warns MPs against ‘sustained attack’ on BBC after US president’s $1bn legal threat

Donald Trump has threatened to sue the BBC after it aired an edited version of a speech he gave ahead of the 2021 Capitol Riots.

However, this is far from the first time that Trump has threatened a media company with legal action over perceived damages to his reputation.

Read about the various lawsuits here:

Media lawyer Mark Stephens has outlined the “legal trip wires” for Mr Trump to secure victory in a case against the BBC.

For the case to go ahead, Mr Stephens said Mr Trump’s legal team would have to show that the programme had been aired in the US state of Florida.

The BBC has not confirmed if it was, but on its website, it states that viewers watching iPlayer, the platform on which the programme was aired, had to be in the UK to stream and download content.

It’s not yet clear if the programme was shared on the BBC’s global news feed. The Independent has contacted the BBC to ask if it was.

Mr Stephens said: “The problem for President Trump’s lawyers is that Panorama wasn’t broadcast in the USA and BBC iPlayer isn’t available in the USA, so it’s not clear if any US court would have jurisdiction to hear the claim.”

Several Labour backbenchers have called on culture secretary Lisa Nandy to remove Sir Robbie Gibb, a former political adviser to Theresa May when she was prime minister, from the BBC Board.

Answering a question from Labour MP Sarah Owen (Luton North), Ms Nandy said: “The charter sets a strict legal threshold that must be met before dismissal of a board member, and so I am unable to pursue the course of action that she suggests.”

BBC figures on the broadcaster’s editorial guidelines and standards committee will face questions from MPs in a hearing likely to take place in the coming weeks.

The Commons Culture, Media and Sport committee said it had agreed to hold an evidence session with members of the BBC’s editorial guidelines and standards committee – BBC chair Samir Shah and board members Sir Robbie Gibb and Caroline Thomson.

Former editorial standards advisers Michael Prescott and Caroline Daniel will also be invited to give evidence in the session focusing on the BBC committee’s processes and how it ensures compliance with editorial guidelines.

Culture secretary Lisa Nandy agreed that leadership changes at the BBC will not fix all the problems faced by the corporation.

She said: “I do strongly agree with him that two resignations are not the answer to the challenges that the BBC has faced, not just over the last week, but in recent months.

“I’m pleased that the chairman of the BBC, Dr Samir Shah, has accepted where the institution has made mistakes. I’m pleased that he’s been open with the chair of the Select Committee about that and I’m pleased that he is setting out concrete actions that follow.”

Ms Nandy said that these actions must be swift, robust and transparent.

The culture secretary acknowledged “serious concerns and failings” on the part of the BBC Arabic Service, but said: “The World Service is a light on the hill for people in places of darkness and there are many in this in the world at the moment, and this Government strongly supports the World Service and will continue to do so.”

The BBC must “renew its mission for the modern age”, the culture secretary has told MPs.

Ministers will begin the once-a-decade process of reviewing the broadcaster’s charter soon, Ms Nandy said, adding it would ensure a BBC that is fiercely independent and genuinely accountable to the public.

Saying the process would begin imminently, she said: “Together, we will ensure the BBC is sustainably funded, commands the public’s trust and continues to drive growth, good jobs, skills and creativity across every region and nation of the UK.

“In an era in which trust is fraying and truth is contested across our nation, it will ensure the BBC remains fiercely independent and is genuinely accountable to the public it serves.”

The BBC’s charter expires at the end of 2027.

• Tim Davie began by acknowledging it had been a “tough few days” and said “we all need to be looking after each other and making sure we set everything in context”.

• He insisted the BBC will “thrive” as he said the narrative “will not just be given by our enemies”.

• Stepping away from his personal decision to leave his post, he said the BBC is “more than one person” and said “it’s all of our actions together and us working and doing our business every single day”, praising the work done across the organisation.

• He said the BBC must “be very clear and stand up for our journalism”, saying he sees “the free press under pressure”, and insisted the BBC “must fight for our journalism.

• Davie said that while mistakes “have cost us”, he is “fiercely proud” and said its work “speaks louder than any newspaper, any weaponisation”.

• Speaking about his decision to resign he said the relentlessness of the role, the upcoming Charter renewal and criticism of the Panorama documentary on Trump were all contributing factors.