Q&A: BBC pay-off scandal

Lord Patten and Mark Thompson are at loggerheads over BBC pay-offs

The BBC has been criticised for paying £25m to 150 outgoing senior executives between 2009 and 2012 - some £2m more than their contracts stipulated.

Executives, including former director general Mark Thompson and BBC Trust chairman Lord Patten, are being questioned by politicians over the payments.

Here's how the situation arose, who is involved and what might happen next.

What prompted the investigation into BBC pay-offs?

What happened next?

What did the investigation find?

How did the BBC respond?

Were any criminal proceedings launched as a result of the report's conclusions?

What happened next?

Have BBC redundancy policies changed as a result?

Was any money recouped?

Did the BBC lose the plot?

Could this spell the end of the BBC Trust?