Bong!...Out of 2,920 BBC staff who work at MediaCityUK only 134 full time and 16 part time employees actually live in Salford. And out of those, how many reside beyond the bubble of Salford Quays we'll never know because the BBC, when asked under Freedom of Information, couldn't tell.
Bong!...Out of 3,700 jobs advertised by the BBC in the UK since 2012, only 646, or 17%, were based at Media City.
Bong!...The Beeb has paid over £6.3million in business rates since the Government allowed Salford Council to keep a hefty slice in 2013. Where has it all gone? Ask the people who are making the cuts...
Bong!...The BBC is paying Peel Holdings 16% above what it should be paying for its space at Media City, according to the latest report from the National Audit Office. The Beeb is paying Peel £21million a year in running costs which means the public body is coughing up over £3million a year more than it should.
Bong!...The BBC signed a lease until 2029 with Peel for Media City that has no `break clauses', which means it can't renegotiate the rent...It's paying around £3million a year over the odds, so that's, er, somewhere over £55million extra in total by the end. And we wonder why Peel Holdings' owners, Isle of Man tax exiles John Whittaker and family, increased their personal wealth by £70million last year. And why, I'm hearing, certain BBC producers are filming outside because they can't afford the studio time indoors...
This article first appeared in the Mary Burns page in the printed issue of the Salford Star - click here
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