Channel 4 in diversity row as chairman expresses fury at appointment of five new white bosses

Four out the five new members are white, including Dame Annette King.

Channel 4's chairman Sir Ian Cheshire was outraged by the announcement, warning the board was lagging behind its own diversity targets.

In an internal memo seen by The Daily Telegraph, Cheshire said: "These appointments will improve representation on the board but do not yet meet the levels of representation throughout the rest of the organisation."

The 64-year-old, who was appointed as the broadcaster's chairman in March 2022, added: "Appointments to the board are not ultimately in our control due to procedural reasons but we are committed to continuing to push for further progress."

Channel 4's board now has 15 members, 14 of whom are white.

The broadcaster has an overall target to have 20 per cent of its staff from ethnic minorities, 12 per cent with disabilities and six per cent who identify as LGBTQ.

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The targets are above national demographic figures, with 18 per cent of the UK population being from ethnic minority backgrounds, 18 per cent having disabilities and just three per cent identifying as LGBTQ.

Boots chief executive Sebastian James, who is a close friend of Lord David Cameron, was among the new board members.

Advertising industry veteran Dame Annette King, Warner Records UK boss Alex Burford and entrepreneur Debbie Wosskow were also named as non-executive directors.

Tom Adeyoola, a tech entrepreneur who launched a start-up that allows retailers to showcase their clothes on AI-generated models, was the only non-white appointment.

A spokesman of the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) said: “DCMS is absolutely committed to advancing equality of opportunity in its public appointments, to ensure that boards of public bodies benefit from a range of diverse perspectives and are representative of the people they serve.

“Appointments to the Channel 4 board were made by Ofcom following a fair and open competition, with approval from the DCMS Secretary of State.”

Channel 4, which was founded under Margaret Thatcher in 1982, has a statutory obligation to serve young and diverse viewers.

The Government abandoned previous plans to privatise Channel 4 last year, instead opting to move jobs to Leeds, Glasgow and Bristol.

Board members, who are selected by Ofcom, will serve three-year terms.

Ofcom's recommendations are given to Frazer for final approval.

Responding to Cheshire's complaints, Common Sense Group chair Sir John Hayes said: “This is very odd and seems to me like it would breach anti-discrimination and equality legislation. It is not for Sir Ian to discriminate against people on the basis of their colour, which seems to be implicit in his comments.

“What I will be doing is writing to the chairman of the Equalities Commission and drawing the comments that the chairman has made to his attention. These remarks seem to me to be certainly highly contentious.

“The implication of what he’s saying is that he will discriminate against people of a certain colour, regardless of ability, which is not permissible in law.”