The BBC asked former England player Gary Lineker to "step aside" from hosting his football program on Friday after he stirred controversy about impartiality by criticizing the British government's new asylum policy.
The 62-year-old, who hosts the Match of the Day flagship show, this week on Twitter compared the language used to introduce the new policy to that of Nazi Germany.
The BBC stated that it believed Lineker's "recent social media conduct to be a breach of our principles" and advised him to refrain from endorsing any particular political viewpoints".
In a statement, the broadcaster said: "The BBC has decided that he will step aside from hosting Match Of The Day until we've had an agreed-upon and unambiguous policy on his social media usage".
Lineker's answer to a video where Home Secretary Suella Braverman announced strategies to block migrants from crossing the Channel on small boats set off the argument.
Lineker, the highest-paid celebrity at the BBC, stated on Twitter: "There is no significant influx. We accept significantly fewer refugees than most other major European nations.
This approach, described in terminology eerily reminiscent of that used by Germany in the 1930s to target the most defenceless individuals, is just enormously cruel.
To dissuade thousands of migrants from travelling across the Channel on small boats, the Tory administration plans to criminalize all applications for asylum made by illegal immigrants and move them elsewhere, like Rwanda.
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak stated in the House of Commons earlier this week that stopping the boats is "the people's priority" and vowed to "destroy the criminal organizations" making money from the travels.
Rights Concerns
Yet, according to the UN and European and UN rules on asylum, the measure would turn Britain into a worldwide pariah.
In a tweet posted on Thursday, Lineker expressed his excitement about hosting Match Of The Day on Saturday.
In an earlier interview, he assured reporters outside his London residence that he would continue criticizing the BBC's immigration policy and that he had no reason to fear losing the job.
According to a BBC statement from Friday, Lineker is "second to none" in what it sports commentary.
"We have never said Gary should be an opinion-free zone, or that he can't have a perspective on topics that concern to him, but we have said he should steer well away from taking sides on party political matters or political scandals," the statement continued.
Ian Wright, a former England and Arsenal attacker, announced shortly after that he would not participate in the program this weekend as a show of support for Lineker.
Everyone knows how many matches of the Day matter to him, but he tweeted, "I've told the BBC I won't be doing it tomorrow. "Solidarity." According to a BBC statement from Friday, Lineker is "second to none" regarding sports commentary.
Another former England striker and fellow analyst, Alan Shearer, also announced he would not participate in the segment after numerous other broadcasters supported Lineker.
When Tim Davie became director-general of the BBC at the end of 2020, he warned the staff about their social media usage.
Since Lineker is a freelance broadcaster for the BBC and not a regular employee, he is exempt from the exact stringent impartiality requirements because he is not in charge of providing news or political commentary.
The former Barcelona and Tottenham player has welcomed migrants into his home and has publicly criticized the way the government handles migrant crossings in the past.
He has long maintained that he can voice his political views because he does not work for the BBC's news or current affairs sections.
In October, a tweet about the Conservative Party violated the BBC's impartiality standards.
