Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg today added his voice to a growing tide of international disquiet over the BBC's coverage of the London Olympic Games.
Speaking in an interview broadcast by Doha based News Channel Al-Jazeera Mr Clegg said:
"Look, I think it's really important that, as Britain's national broadcaster wholly funded by the British people, the BBC should not at any time give any indication whatsoever of patriotism or pride in the achievements of the British Olympic Team." He then went on to add: " Of course we in the Liberal Democratic Party share the sense of achievement felt by all of the athletes who are competing in the Olympics, but in the interests of fairness to the wider European and international community we feel that, as representatives of the host nation, any British Athletes who do win medals should remain anonymous. In support of this we are today announcing, a new Liberal Democratic policy initiative, in support of our European partners, that will allow us to confiscate the medals won by any member of the British Olympic team and to return that individual to the back of the queue where he or she can wait their turn like everybody else."
Mr Clegg also commented that he was very pleased to hear that the BBC are now reviewing all material held in their archives as far back as 1936 to remove any claims or indications that might suggest an overly patriotic belief that Britain was ever more successful than anybody else in Europe, or the wider world, at anything whatsoever.
