The Culture Secretary will launch a bid to ‘root out’ harassment in the TV industry this week after the Gregg Wallace allegations engulfed the BBC.
Lisa Nandy will discuss creating new codes of conduct for workers in the arts to address sexual harassment and power imbalances between stars and junior staff.
She is considering imposing new industry standards, believing that the repeated scandals show bad behaviour is not being adequately addressed, the Sunday Times reported.
Ms Nandy is expected to meet representatives from the Creative Industries Independent Standards Authority (CIISA) on Wednesday.
The watchdog was set up to improve and uphold standards of behaviour and to prevent and tackle all forms of bullying and harassment.
Ms Nandy is said to want to ‘get a grip’ on the issue, and will look at imposing new industry standards with a statutory footing to address sexual harassment.
A government source said: ‘Lisa is committed to working with CIISA and the creative industries to tackle these issues.’
It comes after the BBC’s director-general, Tim Davie, and chief content officer, Charlotte Moore, said it was vital the industry is ‘not only committed to the highest standards of behaviour and conduct, but that is reflected in people’s experiences’.
Lisa Nandy will launch a bid to root out harassment in the TV industry in the wake of the Gregg Wallace scandal, including introducing new codes of conducts for workers in the arts
In a letter to staff, they said employees had their ‘total support in raising any issues around inappropriate behaviour at work, and we encourage anyone to speak up if you see anything that is not right’.
‘We know that speaking out takes courage; we want to assure you we will always listen and take your concerns seriously. We will follow up on any allegations that are presented to us in line with our established complaints and whistleblowing procedures.’
Wallace faces multiple complaints of inappropriate behaviour, originally from 13 people across a range of shows over a 17-year period, which production company Banijay UK has said it is taking ‘incredibly seriously’ amid an external investigation.
The presenter apologised last week for claiming in an Instagram video that complaints about his behaviour came from ‘a handful of middle-class women of a certain age’, and added he would ‘take some time out’.
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A BBC source said: ‘The BBC is very supportive of steps to improve industry standards and will take a leadership role in doing so.’
The broadcaster has provided funding to CIISA, and is working with it to improve the experience for people working on productions, including freelancers.
Wallace apologised last week for claiming in an Instagram video that complaints about his behaviour came from ‘a handful of middle-class women of a certain age
A BBC spokeswoman added that an independent investigation is being carried out into the alleged conduct of Gregg Wallace by Banijay UK.
‘Banijay UK launched the review because they have the direct contractual relationship with Gregg Wallace. He is not employed by the BBC. When issues have been raised with the BBC we have taken action, referring issues to the relevant production company and challenging his behaviour directly as has been widely reported.
‘We hope Banijay UK’s independent investigation can be concluded rigorously and as swiftly as possible. We want the review to follow due process and ensure fairness to all involved.
‘We will provide whatever assistance we can to the investigation. We are already running our own review into workplace culture. It is vital that we have an industry that is not only committed to the highest standards of behaviour and conduct, but that is reflected in people’s experiences. We have always been clear that should people want to raise issues with the BBC, they will be taken very seriously.’