BEEB BOSS PUTS A PRIVATE PLANE ON HIS EXPENSES; FIRST GREEDY MPS WERE EXPOSED FOR ABUSING CLAIMS SYSTEM, NOW..

Byline: Nicola Methven

BBC CHIEF Mark Thompson chartered a private jet on expenses, it was revealed yesterday.

Thompson, who earns pounds 647,000 as director-general, charged the pounds 1277 charter to the corporation when he had to rush back to London from a family holiday.

And the BBC picked up the pounds 2236 bill for his entire family to return home from another holiday last year when he was called back to deal with the Jonathan Ross Manuelgate scandal.

The items helped Thompson to run up a pounds 77,823 bill on expenses over five years, making him by far the highest claimant on the corporation's board.

The whole board claimed a total of more than pounds 360,000 over the period.

Details released by the BBC yesterday showed the pounds 1277.71 cost of chartering a private plane in 2004, when Thompson cut short a family holiday to deal with an "urgent staff issue" in London.

The nature of the problem was not detailed in the documents released by the corporation. But a BBC source said he had flown back because of an investigation into Alan Yentob's expenses.

Yentob, who was head of entertainment, drama and children's programmes, denied the allegations and was cleared of any wrongdoing.

Lewd

Last October, Thompson was forced to dash back from Sicily as public anger grew over lewd messages left by Ross and Russell Brand on Fawlty Towers star Andrew Sachs's answering machine.

On the same day as his family's flight back to the UK, Thompson claimed pounds 500 for hotel rooms in Sicily.

He claimed a further pounds 206 for what is described in accompanying notes as "holiday cut short".

Among the other items he charged to the BBC was the pounds 70 hire of evening dress for a diplomatic corps event at Buckingham Palace. He also put his subscription to the British Academy of Film and Television Arts - more than pounds 200 - on expenses, as well as nearly pounds 135 for a lunch with Tesco.

Thompson even managed to claim for some meetings before he started his job in May 2004, including a pounds 140 dinner.

And the director-general claimed pounds 99.99 last year for a bottle of champagne - an 80th birthday gift for entertainer Bruce Forsyth.

The figures also revealed that 27 of the BBC's top 50 executives earn more than the Prime Minister's salary of pounds 195,000.

Jana Bennett, director of BBC Vision, who holds creative control of the corporation's television output and earns pounds 406,000 a year, had the second-highest expenses over the period at just under pounds 60,000.

They included pounds 500 for a handbag stolen while she was on business and more than pounds 1900 for flowers.

And while Jonathan Ross's misdemeanours cost the Beeb dearly in air fares for the Thompsons, Bennett's dealings with him appear more cordial.

Her claims included a pounds 100 bouquet for the chat show and radio host.

Caroline Thomson, the BBC's chief operating officer, said last night the claims were published after 38 freedom of information requests but insisted there was no "arm twisting".

CAPTION(S):

RADIO ROW: Andrew Sachs CLAIMS: Thompson