Former BBC presenter Carol Vorderman has been urged to "stop whinging" by GB News host Andrew Pierce after she claimed that "Tories at the top" of the broadcasting company "ousted her".
Vorderman, who formerly presented BBC Radio Wales, departed the broadcasting giant in protest of their social media guidelines, implemented following controversy surrounding Gary Lineker.
Speaking on his GB News show, Andrew Pierce claimed he "doesn't recall" seeing any "Tories at the top of the BBC" and thought Vorderman "would have understood" the guidelines given to presenters before her exit.
Andrew then slammed Vorderman for "whinging" about her exit and swiped: "You can't have it both ways!"
Andrew Pierce told Carol Vorderman to 'stop whinging' about her BBC exit
GB News / PA
Andrew fumed: "It is important that presenters are impartial. I appreciate Gary Lineker takes no notice of that edict, but she, I thought, would understand it."
Joined by former BBC Executive Roger Bolton, the commentator claimed the BBC "does have Tories at the top" with Director-General Tim Davie, but argued that the company does "have an issue with free speech".
Bolton explained: "There are Tories at the top of the BBC. The Director-General is a former Conservative candidate. In regards to Carol Vorderman, she should have known.
"This is very difficult - the BBC get rid of Carol Vorderman, it's damned for stopping free speech. If it lets us speak, it gets damned for being left-wing."
Carol Vorderman left the BBC in protest over their social media guidelines for presenters
PA
Bolton then highlighted the "real issue" with free speech at the BBC, following Vorderman's exit and the controversy surrounding Gary Lineker.
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Bolton explained: "It's tried to produce guidelines which say that people in news and current affairs shouldn't express their views at all. And also people presenting major shows, the figureheads of the BBC, they shouldn't either.
"But on the other hand, there is a real issue here about freedom of speech. If you've got somebody who's a freelance broadcaster who is doing lots of other things, are they to be silent in the rest of their life because they present a programme on the BBC?"
Bolton then suggested that given Vorderman's views, she should join GB News as a presenter. He claimed: "Carol is clearly a campaigner - maybe she should come on your show and present one of your programmes.
"She's got a book coming out in the autumn which is called 'Out of Order: What's Gone Wrong with Britain and One Woman's Mission to Fix It'. So she can't pretend she's not participating in the political debate, can she?"
Roger Bolton says there is an 'issue with free speech' at the BBC
GB News
In criticism of Vorderman, Andrew stated that it is "a very special and unique position to be on the BBC", but it is "funded by the taxpayer" and you "can't have it both ways".
When questioned by host Bev Turner if Bolton believes "entertainment presenters on the BBC or a sports presenter should be held to different standards" in comparison to the news team, Bolton agreed.
He responded: "I think so, although I think if you're something like Gary Lineker, where you're there every week and people do see you as the face of the BBC, then you've got to be concerned about the way people will regard the BBC.
"You're not helping the BBC. If people look at you and think, oh, well, you're a lefty or right or whatever you are, the BBC's a hard enough job in the present climate to persuade people that it tries to be as objective as possible. People paid a lot of money by the BBC ought to bear that in mind."
