ITV gives scandal-hit CBI the cold shoulder

ITV is distancing itself from the scandal-ridden Confederation of British Industry as more blue chip firms leave the business lobby group awaiting a decisive vote on its fate.

The broadcaster, itself reeling from the revelations about This Morning presenter Phillip Schofield, will not renew its membership of the CBI following allegations of sex and drugs at the affected organisation.

Oil titan BP, accounting giant KPMG, lender TSB, construction group Balfour Beatty and the Ford motor company are among the latest members to resign from the CBI in an exodus of blue chip companies.

They follow, among others, insurer Aviva, retailer John Lewis and NatWest bank. All three have a female CEO. They were joined by dozens of other firms. ITV will remain a member and have the right to vote in Tuesday’s extraordinary general meeting, but it will not renew its CBI membership.

The latest wave of redundancies puts further strain on the blighted group, which relies on subscriptions for most of its £25m income.

The CBI is expected to file for insolvency if it fails to decisively win Tuesday’s poll, representing a vote of confidence in the CBI’s board led by Director General Rain Newton-Smith.

Members who have already left cannot vote. Those who have suspended their membership remain eligible.

Significantly, none of the companies contacted by the Mail on Sunday have spoken out in favor of the CBI’s overhaul plans, which it put forward in a 29-page document last week. Some, including beverage giant Diageo and Intercontinental Hotels, said they would decide on the day.

There was confusion last night after a number of companies, including BT, said it was unclear whether they would be allowed to vote because they had suspended their membership.

The CBI’s plans to reform itself include replacing Brian McBride as president and hiring Ffion Hague, a governance expert and wife of former Tory party leader Lord Hague, to overhaul the way it is run.

The lobby group, which claims to be the voice of business, says it speaks on behalf of 190,000 companies. But just five trade organizations make up nearly two-thirds of that number, the Mail on Sunday has found.

The largest of these is the National Farmers’ Union.

It has 46,000 members but – like the other trade organizations – will have only one vote in the ballot. The CBI refuses to say how many members it has, despite a commitment to be more transparent.

“The CBI is made up of policy-making multinationals, many of whom are foreigners and landowners,” said John Longworth, former director-general of the British Chambers of Commerce, a rival lobby group. ‘In the UK, 85 per cent of businesses are family owned or run. The CBI doesn’t speak for them.’

A simple majority is required, but experts say the CBI is doomed unless its plans are approved by an overwhelming majority. Whatever the outcome, jobs threaten to disappear among its 300 employees, while it wants to cut costs by a third.

Members will be asked to approve commitments to improve “governance, culture and purpose.” An external review found the CBI to have “undervalued human resource management skills” but rejected claims that the organization’s culture was “toxic” or “misogynistic.”

It followed revelations of sexual harassment, assault, including rape, and drug use at CBI events.

Tony Danker was ousted as director general, although many of the most serious allegations predate his time.

A number of other employees have also been suspended pending a police investigation.

After a second rape allegation appeared in The Guardian in April, the CBI suspended its membership and policy activities ahead of Tuesday’s meeting.

In another blow, IPSE – which represents 20,000 freelancers – told The Mail on Sunday that it is no longer a member of the CBI and would not vote. It is not clear how ITV will vote. The NFU said it would attend the meeting but declined to say how it would vote. Other firms such as Royal Mail and Scottish Power also declined to comment.

The CBI declined to comment.