Was Director General Mark Thompson's wife present when her husband met with Ariel Sharon in 2005?

V Galer made this Freedom of Information request to British Broadcasting Corporation This request has been closed to new correspondence. Contact us if you think it should be reopened.

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V Galer
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Dear Sir or Madam,

Was Director General Mark Thompson's wife Jane Blumberg present when her husband met with Ariel Sharon in November 2005.

Is it normal practice for spouses to attend high level meetings overseas with their partners?

Is the cost of spouses travelling with their partners funded by the UK license fees?

Yours faithfully,

V Galer

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FOI Enquiries, British Broadcasting Corporation

Dear Ms Galer

Thank you for your request for information under the Freedom of
Information Act 2000, about spouses attending high level meetings. Your
request was received on 3rd February 2009. We will deal with your
request as promptly as possible, and at the latest within 20 working
days. If you have any queries about your request, please contact us at
the address below.

The reference number for your request is RFI20090243.

Kind regards

The Information Policy & Compliance Team

BBC Freedom of Information
Room 2252, BBC White City
201 Wood Lane
London W12 7TS

www.bbc.co.uk/foi
Email: [BBC request email]

Tel: 020 8008 2882
Fax: 020 8008 2398

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FOI Enquiries, British Broadcasting Corporation

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Dear Sir or Madam

Please find attached the response to your request for information which
has been dealt with under the terms of the Freedom of Information Act
2000.

<<RFI20090243 - final response.pdf>>
Kind Regards

L Wright
Information Policy and Compliance

BBC Freedom of Information
Room 2252, White City
201 Wood Lane
London W12 7TS, UK

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V Galer left an annotation ()

Response in full.....

13 February 2009

Dear Sir or Madam,

Request for Information – RFI20090243

Thank you for your request of 3rd February 2009 under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 requesting:

Was Director General Mark Thompson's wife Jane Blumberg present when her husband met with Ariel
Sharon in November 2005.

Is it normal practice for spouses to attend high level meetings overseas with their partners?

Is the cost of spouses travelling with their partners funded by the UK license fees?

I can confirm that Director General Mark Thompson’s wife did not travel with him on his trip to Israel in
2005.

With regard to your request to know whether the cost of spouses travelling with their partners is funded
by the UK license fee please find the following extract from the BBC expenses policy which states the
BBC’s position on this:

5.2 Travel with a spouse or partner
If a member of staff is accompanied by a spouse or partner who is not involved in BBC business, the
traveller must bear the cost of their spouse/partner. It is not permitted to downgrade the travel or
accommodation booked in order to fund travel costs for a companion. If there is a business reason for a
spouse or partner to accompany the BBC member of staff, this should be pre-approved in writing by the
divisional finance director and any additional costs incurred by the BBC for the companion will be treated as
a benefit in kind. Spouses/partners not engaged or employed by the BBC are not covered by BBC
insurance.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Appeal Rights
If you are not satisfied with this response you have the right to an internal review by a BBC senior manager
or legal adviser. Please contact us at the address above, explaining what you would like us to review and
including your reference number. If you are not satisfied with the internal review, you can appeal to the
Information Commissioner. The contact details are: Information Commissioner's Office, Wycliffe House,
Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire, SK9 5AF, telephone 01625 545 700 or see http://www.ico.gov.uk/

Kind Regards

Louise Wright
Advisor, Information Policy & Compliance

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