During this period Yentob was the Kids Company chairman of trustees

Only now has the full extent of Comic Relief's largesse been disclosed

Comic Relief, backed by the BBC for three decades, gave £1.4m to Kids Co

Fat cat BBC executive Alan Yentob is at the centre of a new conflict-of-interest row, after it emerged two charities supported by the BBC gave £1.6 million to Kids Company, the scandal-hit youth organisation of which Yentob was chairman.

I can reveal that Comic Relief, which has been backed by the BBC for nearly three decades, gave £1.4 million to Kids Company between 2000 and 2014.

While it is known that Kids Company was a beneficiary of Comic Relief, only now has the full extent of its largesse been disclosed. On top of this, the BBC’s own charity, Children In Need, gave Kids Company £209,000 between 2002 and 2005. During this period, Yentob was Kids Company chairman of trustees — a voluntary role — and also had various senior BBC jobs, including director of BBC TV and head of the drama, entertainment and children’s department. He is currently the £330,000 per year BBC creative director.

Fat cat BBC executive Alan Yentob (pictured right with Richard Curtis) is at the centre of a new conflict-of-interest row

The allegation of a conflict of interests has arisen because both Comic Relief and Children In Need receive extensive free publicity each year, thanks to blanket coverage on BBC TV.

Tory MP Andrew Bridgen, who is calling on BBC chief Lord Hall to launch an investigation, says: ‘This appears to be yet another murky situation involving Alan Yentob, Kids Company, the BBC and large sums of public money. It is surely time for Tony Hall to see to it that Mr Yentob answers all relevant questions about the apparent conflict of interests he’s enmeshed in. Or does Tony Hall not care what the public thinks about how BBC executives behave?’ Comic Relief was set up by Yentob’s friend, film director Richard Curtis, and its trustees include BBC executive Peter Salmon.

Some of the £1.4 million given to Kids Company was in loans, which were later converted into grants.

The charity closed in August amid financial chaos, with 600 jobs lost. It is now being investigated by the Charity Commission, Parliament and the police over allegations of financial impropriety.

A Comic Relief spokesman says: ‘Comic Relief staff and external independent sector specialists are involved in scrutinising applications before finally recommending them for approval or rejection to a full Board of Trustees for the final decision.

‘Alan Yentob was not involved in decision-making processes around any grants awarded to Kids Company.’

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