BBC and Former Newsline Presenter Settle Employment Tribunal Case Without Admitting Liability

The employment tribunal case between Donna Traynor, a former BBC Newsline presenter, and the BBC in Northern Ireland and its director Adam Smyth has been settled.

The parties have agreed to bring the matter to a conclusion without any admission of liability.

Ms Traynor had claimed that she was discriminated against on the basis of age, sex, and disability, but the BBC and Mr Smyth denied these allegations.

The case was scheduled to last for several days, but it was halted on Friday morning when a settlement was announced.

Ms Traynor left the BBC in November 2021 with immediate effect after a career spanning more than 30 years.

The BBC appointed Mr Smyth as its head of news in 2022, and he was later appointed as the director of BBC NI.

He said that the settlement was "acceptable" and that the BBC treats the use of license fee payers' money "very carefully and very sensitively."