Tim Davie has branded Bob Vylan’s chant of ‘death, death to the IDF’ at Glastonbury as ‘antisemitic’ and acknowledged the broadcaster’s ‘very significant mistake’ in permitting it to be aired.

In a session with MPs on the Culture, Media and Sport Committee, the director general of the BBC expressed that the rap group’s chant during an iPlayer livestream was ‘very disturbing’.

He confessed to the committee that he couldn’t provide a ‘categorical assurance’ against the emergence of further scandals involving BBC personalities following recent issues.

Committee Labour MP James Frith commented on how the rap group incited the crowd into what he described as an ‘antisemitic frenzy’ and declared that although he owns a Bob Vylan record, he won’t be listening to it anymore.

Mr. Frith questioned Mr. Davie about whether BBC staff had ‘misread’ the situation, especially after choosing not to broadcast the rap group Kneecap due to one member’s alleged support of a terrorist group.

Responding, Mr Davie said: ‘The fact that was broadcast to a live audience was very disturbing. The BBC made a very significant mistake.’

He vowed that those who were involved in the ‘antisemitic broadcast’ were facing ‘consequences’ but declined to provide further details.

‘It is inappropriate to provide a running commentary on individuals facing such consequences. They are well-meaning people who made an error,’ Mr. Davie concluded.

Mr Davie, alongside BBC chair Dr Samir Shah, is being grilled by MPs on controversial documentary Gaza: How To Survive a Warzone, which it later emerged was narrated by the son of a high-ranking Hamas official.

Committee chair Dame Caroline Dinenage MP, has previously labelled the debacle a ‘hugely damaging episode’ for the BBC’s reputation for impartiality. 

The pair are also being quizzed in detail on how the corporation responded to complaints about the behaviour of MasterChef star Gregg Wallace.

He said he would not offer a ‘running commentary’ on any developing scandals within the broadcaster following scandals involving the likes of Gregg Wallace and Huw Edwards.

Mr Davie – who thundered that he did not recognise the term ‘talent’ – said that ‘we may see more things coming out’ in the future.

But, denying that the BBC had a ‘toxic culture’, he suggested that the fact that figures such as Wallace were being called out was proof that there was ‘positive change’ happening to weed out problematic stars. 

He also ducked questions at the start of the meeting on whether he would consider his position following the summer of scandals, but admitted he had been ‘feeling the pressure’. 

Asked if he could give a reassurance that there will not be another ‘scandal of BBC talent abusing their position’, he said: ‘Can I give a categorical assurance that I’m never going to have someone abusing their power at the BBC? 

‘No. Because culture (change) is an ongoing work. I think things have changed since we last talked to the committee, we are seeing people call it out, and that is a positive change, but it’s ongoing work.

‘I don’t think you can change culture in six months and suddenly say nothing’s going to occur.

‘We may see more things coming out, because in some ways I’m asking for it, and being utterly transparent and running towards the problem, that’s what we need to do.’

He added that the BBC ‘has dismissed people that are not living our values’, adding: ‘That is non-negotiable… nobody is irreplaceable.’

However, he declined to provide further details on whether there are any scandals brewing, adding that he would not provide a ‘running commentary’.

‘We’re not mucking about now,’ he continued – prompting committee chair Dame Caroline Dinenage MP to ask if that ‘begs the question whether you were mucking about before’. 

Asked why the BBC still went ahead with broadcasting what became John Torode and Gregg Wallace’s final series of Masterchef he said the ‘vast majority’ of contestants still supported the show being shown.

One of the participants who had been edited out had called for the show not to be aired because of the message it would send.

Mr Davie said: ‘We talked to all of (the contestants), we were very sensitive about it, the team said, “do you want to air it? Is there any other concerns you want to raise?”, and the vast, vast majority wanted it aired, so you did have that balance.

‘I think the consequences for the individuals who presented MasterChef have been very significant, they’re no longer working with the BBC, so there are those consequences.

‘The other thing in my mind is people can choose to watch it or not, so there’s an element of trust in the audience.

‘In our research, overall, people supported the decision, but I don’t think it was an easy decision, I absolutely respect that view. I think it was on judgment the right thing to do, but I understand that you could see both sides of the argument very clearly.’

The BBC bosses were also questioned on claims of biased reporting on Gaza amid the controversy over the Gaza documentary How To Survive a Warzone.

Mr Davie said the BBC has ‘executed the recommendations’ of a report that found the corporation failed to disclose information about the narrator, the son of a Hamas official, but also blamed production firm Hoyo Films for not disclosing this fact.

He said of the investigation into the documentary’s commissioning: ‘It took a bit of time, 5000 emails, financial trails, we’ve got very different processes and more robust processes in terms of when we’re working with indies (independent production companies), making sure we’ve got the right BBC oversight. 

‘There’s also a leadership change which is material, a new head of news documentaries, we’re hiring for that. It was a bad mistake.’ 

But Mr Davie also criticised Israel for the ‘unacceptable’ act of blocking journalists from entering Gaza – while also defending the decision not to air another documentary, Gaza: Doctors Under Attack, which later aired on Channel 4.

Asked by Labour MP Paul Waugh whether he was being ‘over-cautious’, he said: ‘I think we made the right decision, but I don’t think it’s news by the way from our side here, in terms of the work it’s current affairs.

‘There’s a slight difference in terms of a doc… it’s fairly straightforward where we were, which is we were a little bit frustrated, because clearly the voice is the medics.

‘We’ve given a lot of voice on our airways, by the way, and on our news coverage, to medics working in Gaza under extreme conditions and the terrible things they’re having to face, which is horrendous, but in this film it’s pretty straightforward.’

He added: ‘I take your feedback if you think we’re being too cautious, but my view and the view of the news leadership was that we clearly had someone with a position.’

Chair Dr Shah added: ‘That (documentary) really does go straight to the heart of the BBC’s reputational risk in terms of being trustworthy and impartial. It was a real mistake and we’ve taken fully of these recommendations.

‘I was very concerned to make sure no payment from the BBC went to Hamas. We really went hard on it and that takes time.’ 

They also faced questions on what Dame Caroline appeared to suggest was a ‘disproportionate’ amount of coverage for Reform UK, given that it has only four MPs.

Denying that Reform was being given an undue amount of news coverage, Mr Shah said: ‘They got four million votes. That is a significant amount. I don’t think it’s wall-to-wall (coverage). 

‘We do it on representation in the country, in parliament and news judgements.

‘Because Reform has risen in popularity you might detect greater coverage but that reflects their own popularity within the country as a whole. It’s due coverage proportional to all those factors.’ 

Both Mr Davie and Mr Shah furiously rejected claims the BBC had biased elements within its ranks.

Mr Davie denied that political editor Laura Kuenssberg had given ‘soft’ interviews to Reform leader Nigel Farage, adding of BBC journalists: ‘They don’t lack appetite to put politicians under scrutiny and they have no desire to give anyone a so-called easy ride if proper questions are required.’

The committee singled out why Robbie Gibb, a former director of communications for Theresa May when she was in Government, was in a role as a BBC board member.

‘He’s a non-executive member (of the board),’ Mr Shah fumed.

MPs also asked why Thomas Skinner, a media personality recently pictured with vice-president JD Vance who has described Donald Trump as ‘brilliant’, was recruited for Strictly Come Dancing.

TV commentator Narinder Kaur has blasted Mr Skinner’s casting while claiming she was rejected after applying because she is ‘too controversial’. 

On Skinner, Mr Davie said: ‘We wouldn’t take anyone whose views were beyond the pale. 

‘I’m not an expert on the individual per se. We’re a pretty broad church.’ 

Mr Davie opened the meeting by saying he would be ‘inhuman’ if he did not admit he had felt the pressure of the recent scandals – between MasterChef, Glastonbury and, as of last week, the dismissal of Eastenders star Jamie Borthwick after he used a derogatory remark to describe disabled people while filming Strictly Come Dancing.

He said: ‘This is not a job for the faint-hearted. What has been on my mind is dealing with the issues.’

He acknowledged the issues the BBC faces are ‘serious’ and said he is ‘ensuring the BBC is taking the right actions, I’ve been totally focused on that’.

He added: ‘If I said I wasn’t feeling the pressure I would be inhuman.’

This is a developing story.