BBC could offer Robert Peston a Newsnight role to head off ITV bid
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Version 0 of 1. The BBC is pulling out all the stops to keep Robert Peston from jumping ship to ITV with the possibility of more presenting roles for the economics editor, including BBC2’s Newsnight. Peston, who has been offered the role of News at Ten political editor by ITV, has made no secret in the past of his desire to present Newsnight. He said he would have loved to replace Jeremy Paxman as the programme’s lead anchor when Evan Davis did so a year ago. Although Davis is thought to be unlikely to move so soon after joining Newsnight, BBC insiders suggest that one next step could be to replace David Dimbleby on Question Time. The veteran presenter’s five-year contract is up for renewal and although widely admired both within and outside the BBC, Dimbleby will be 77 later this month. Related: Robert Peston lined up for political editor role by ITV However, several well-known BBC presenters would leap at the chance of taking over on Question Time, one of the most prestigious roles at the BBC which rarely becomes available, so such a move is likely to prove controversial. Peston, who declined to comment, has fronted several documentaries since making the switch from BBC business editor as well as radio interview slot with Eddie Mair. “Robert wants to do more presenting, and that could include doing more stuff on Newsnight,” said one BBC source. “He has been offered the ITV job and he hasn’t decided to take it yet. The BBC is trying to work out what it could give him instead.” Peston has previously presented editions of Newsnight, making his debut in the presenter’s chair of the BBC2 show last year and interviewing Jeremy Corbyn on the programme a few weeks ago. The offer of covering politics for ITV, made days ago, is also proving tempting. James Harding, the BBC’s head of news, is understood to be particularly keen to keep Peston – responsible for a string of scoops including the Northern Rock collapse and increasingly well known as a personality as much as a reporter – at the BBC. There is also talk of Peston taking an expanded presenting role left vacant by the departure from the programme of Laura Kuenssberg this summer. Kuenssberg, who replaced Nick Robinson as the BBC’s political editor, was a presenter and chief correspondent on Newsnight. One BBC insider said the job switches were part of a post-election roundabout which has included Nick Robinson moving from political editor to one of Radio 4’s Today show presenters in November. “It’s presenter season with a lot of contracts up and not a lot of money,” said a senior source at the BBC. |