I am writing to express my deep concern about Robbie Gibb’s position on the BBC’s Editorial Guidelines and Standards Committee.

Given his position as Director of The Jewish Chronicle (JC), I do not believe that he is suitable to ensure that the BBC upholds its editorial guidelines and commitments to impartial and accurate reporting.

The recent resignation of four prominent columnists, David Baddiel, Jonathan Feedland, David Aaronovitch and Hadley Freeman has exposed longstanding concerns over the newspaper’s systemic failure to uphold professional editorial standards – a concern that led to the Independent Press Standards Organisation (IPSO) monitoring the organisation and calls for a standards investigation. The JC has long been a controversial newspaper that has promoted Islamophobic discourse and produced numerous hit pieces against pro-Palestinian activists – many of which have led to successful libel cases being filed against them.

Furthermore, since a consortium led by Sir Gibb took ownership of the JC in 2020, the paper has become a mouthpiece for far-right Zionist views and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and abandoned any pretence of neutrality.

In this context, I am shocked that Sir Gibb is considered an appropriate appointment for the BBC’s Editorial Guidelines and Standards Committee. His involvement at the JC has seriously brought into question his ability to uphold professional editorial standards and, given the paper’s own partisan track record, he certainly cannot be relied upon to uphold the corporation’s principles of impartiality, fairness and accuracy.

As you will be aware, the BBC has come under great scrutiny for its coverage of current events in Palestine, particularly with regards to Israel’s ongoing occupation in the West Bank and war on Gaza. It has long been accused of bias: downplaying Palestinian suffering, while obscuring Israeli violence and failing to challenge narratives promoted by its propagandists.

By allowing compromised personalities such as Robbie Gibb to shape and censor the BBC’s coverage on Palestine and the Middle East region, the corporation threatens to seriously undermine its own credibility and the trust the public places in it to provide impartial, fair and accurate coverage.

I urge you to take the necessary steps to rebuild this trust by ensuring that these principles are upheld, particularly on current events in Palestine, and by removing Robbie Gibb from all his roles at the organisation.