A former chief prosecutor for the Crown Prosecution Service has said people shouldn't speculate on social media about the BBC presenter accused of paying a teenager for sexually explicit photographs.

"I think the public have forgotten that posting things on social media is publishing something," Nazir Afzal told BBC Breakfast earlier.

He warned that defamation cases can lead to bankruptcy. Have a watch below.

There have been lots of media lawyers doing the rounds today, explaining the areas of potential legal jeopardy in cases like this - one in particular.

Mark Stephens told the BBC earlier that people posting on social media about the unnamed BBC presenter are in danger of breaking the law.

Speaking on Radio 4's Today programme, he explained that the laws of defamation come into play when even suggestions of someone's identity are made online.

"Even if you don't say 'it is' - by asking the question 'is it?' and identifying an individual - what you are doing is saying 'I believe this individual is bad or could have possibly behaved in a reprehensible way," the media lawyer told our radio colleagues.

Stephens went on to say lawyers call this Twible - a combination of Twitter and libel - and that dealing with cases of it provide a "crust" for many lawyers.

Image source, PA Media

More reaction from the government now, this time from the home secretary who insists any investigation should be allowed to "play out before we jump to any conclusion".

"These are obviously very serious allegations," Suella Braverman told ITV's Good Morning Britain, adding the BBC's internal investigation "to establish the facts" must be allowed to happen.

"I wouldn't want to go behind that or pre-empt any finding," the Tory minister said.

Lots of politicians are being questioned on this issue and some of their responses are along the same lines, but we'll continue to bring you what they say.

Joe Inwood
Outside the BBC's New Broadcasting House, London

There have been TV crew and photographers outside the BBC’s London HQ all morning, waiting to try and grab a quick interview with the director general.

This process, known in the business as a “doorstep”, is a way of trying to get answers when people won’t do an official interview.

It’s a particularly odd experience to be trying to do it to the head of your own organisation, but the BBC needs to cover stories about itself like it would any other body.

There’s been no sign of Tim Davie yet, although the building has many entrances. No doubt he is in for a busy day.

Dominic Casciani
Legal correspondent

The allegations are fairly straightforward.

The presenter is said to have paid a young person an awful lot of money for sexualised pictures. The payments are said to have begun when the teenager was 17 - which is over the age of sexual consent.

But that's not the relevant law when it comes to allegedly indecent images.

The Protection of Children Act 1978 says that it is a crime to take, make, share and possess indecent images of people under 18.

The maximum sentence is 10 years.

A person under the age of 18 cannot give their consent to the images being taken.

If the mother's account to the Sun, external is true, you don't need to be a lawyer to see the potential for a prosecution.

These laws have been tightened over the years to protect young people aged 16 and 17 from sexual exploitation.

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A little earlier, the justice secretary said it'll be important to establish in time what the BBC knew about the allegations against one of its presenters - and when.

Alex Chalk told BBC Breakfast earlier that he was pleased the police had been involved, but insisted "time is of the essence".

The BBC's culture and media editor Katie Razzall says it's not yet known how the initial complaint was received, which is obviously a key question.

Speaking to Radio 4's Today programme this morning, she said it was understood that the BBC's director general Tim Davie only found out about the allegations last Thursday. "He is facing a very grave situation," she said.

In a statement yesterday, the BBC said it first became aware of a complaint in May and new allegations were put to it last week.

We said earlier that the Sun had reported the family of the young person, allegedly paid £35,000 by a presenter for explicit images, was unhappy with the BBC's response to the claims. We have more on that now.

The paper says the family told it "no one from the corporation rang them for a proper interview after the initial complaint" in May.

In a statement on Sunday announcing a staff member had been suspended, the BBC said it was working as fast as possible "to establish the facts in order to properly inform appropriate next steps".

Image source, PA Media

"The BBC first became aware of a complaint in May," it said. "New allegations were put to us on Thursday of a different nature and in addition to our own enquiries we have also been in touch with external authorities, in line with our protocols."

The BBC's culture editor Katie Razzall said the corporation's first statement appeared to suggest its initial investigation may have been hampered by a lack of response from the family. In that statement, released on Friday, the BBC said it did "actively" attempt to speak to "those who have contacted" them "to seek further detail and understanding of the situation".

"If we get no reply to our attempts or receive no further contact that can limit our ability to progress things but it does not mean our enquiries stop," it added.

• Read more on this here

We're hearing that the BBC will meet the Metropolitan Police later today.

In a statement yesterday, the corporation said it had been in touch with "external authorities" over the allegations made against one of its presenters - and the Met later confirmed it had spoken to the BBC.

We'll bring you more on the meeting when we have it.

For days now the BBC has been splashed across the front pages of UK newspapers - including the Sun, which first reported these allegations on Friday.

In a new story, published in Monday's edition of the paper, external, it claims the as-yet unnamed presenter made what it calls two "panicked calls" to the young person after the Sun's initial report came out.

The paper claims the presenter asked the young person, who the presenter is accused of paying for sexually explicit photos, "what have you done?" and asked them to ring their mother to get her to "stop the investigation".

BBC News has not been able to independently verify these claims.

The Sun has published multiple reports, the majority of which include interviews with the young person's mother.

To get a sense of how this situation unfolded, here's a timeline of all the events so far:

• Friday 19 May: The young person's family complain to the BBC about one of its presenters, according to the Sun newspaper
• Thursday 6 July: Allegations "of a different nature" are put to the BBC, according to director general Tim Davie
• Friday 7 July: The Sun publishes claims that a BBC presenter paid a teenager £35,000 for sexually explicit photos
• Saturday 8 July: The Sun on Sunday publishes more details of the presenter's alleged actions
• Sunday 9 July: The BBC confirms a presenter has been suspended and the corporation is in touch with police - with the Met confirming an "initial contact" has been received
• Later on Sunday: The Sun publishes more revelations claiming the presenter made "panicked calls" to the young person, and reports that the family are upset with the BBC's response to the allegations

In the last few minutes, Justice Secretary Alex Chalk has appeared on BBC Breakfast, suggesting an investigation into the BBC's handling of these allegations may need to take place. He also raised questions over who knew what and when.

Chalk said it was important that innocent people's reputations were not damaged in situations like this, and that "time is of the essence" as he urged the BBC to look into the allegations quickly.

"I am pleased to hear such serious allegations are being discussed with the police," he told the programme, "but in the fullness of time, I think there will need to be a careful review about the chronology of this: what happened when."

The Tory MP said he was not trying to "bash the BBC", noting it does an important job, "but I do think they need to get their house in order and they need to proceed promptly."

A number of high-profile presenters at the BBC have taken to social media in recent days to make it clear they are not the unnamed person at the centre of the allegations.

The latest to do so is BBC Breakfast presenter Jon Kay, who told his followers on Twitter , externallast night that he was off on "long-planned annual leave" with his family and would be back on the programme's famous red sofa in two weeks time.

Rylan Clark, Jeremy Vine, Nicky Campbell and Gary Lineker are some of the other people who've denied they are the star in question.

As we reported earlier, Campbell, of Radio 5 Live, tweeted, external that he had reported an anonymous Twitter account to the police over a post claiming he was the presenter.

With stories like this one, BBC News journalists treat the BBC in the same way as any other organisation the news service reports on.

And like with any other organisation, BBC News has to ask BBC management or BBC services for responses and contact the BBC press office for official statements.

Occasionally BBC journalists approach senior managers for unplanned interviews - known as "doorsteps" in the news business.

They also sometimes get offered interviews with management - like this one with BBC director general Tim Davie over the Gary Lineker row.

And when this happens, they know they'll be scrutinised within and outside the BBC over how well they hold their boss to account.

A male BBC presenter has been suspended following allegations he paid a teenager for sexually explicit photographs.

In a statement, the corporation said this is "a complex and fast moving set of circumstances" and that it is working as "quickly as possible to establish the facts in order to properly inform appropriate next steps".

Here to bring you the latest on what we know, in 75 seconds, is BBC News' Charlotte Gallagher:

Let's hear some more now about the legal logistics of all this, specifically when it comes to speculating over the unnamed presenter, from media law expert David Banks.

Speaking on BBC Radio 5 Live today, he says there are laws "which limit what we can say and people need to be aware of that".

"As soon as that Sun front page happened it was certain you would get thousands asking who it could be and others putting names out there to the great distress of innocent presenters who have nothing to do with this," Banks says, adding: "We are all publishers now and subject to the law."

He says he watched with great interest over the weekend as some presenters took screenshots and publicly said they would be handing them to solicitors.

One such person was 5 Live's Nicky Campbell, who tweeted, external that he had reported an anonymous account to the police over a post claiming he was the presenter in question.

Dominic Casciani
Legal correspondent

This is a complicated newsroom equation that criss-crosses between editorial ethics and the law.

Here's the problem: as of Sunday, the BBC star story is more questions than answers.

The Sun's coverage is somewhat coy about specifics.

It is not clear whether it has seen proof of the payments or the alleged photograph of the star in underwear. And this is where the law bites.

The courts have long recognised that it is in the public interest for journalists to unmask "the fraudulent and the scandalous", to quote one famous case, but if there is a lack of reportable evidence, the legal problems begin to build.

One of the main issues media organisations face is the law of defamation which protects an individual's reputation from the massive harm caused by lies.

It protects everyone - whether they are a high-profile BBC presenter or an entirely private individual.

Anyone speculating today on social media about the identity of the presenter should think very, very carefully about the consequences. They could be sued for the harm they cause and financially ruined.

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Image source, PA Media

If you're trying to get a sense of what's going on, or indeed just need a recap, here are some of the key events from the last few days.

• The BBC has suspended an unnamed male presenter over allegations he paid a teenager for sexually explicit photos over a three-year period
• In a statement, the corporation said "it is important that these matters are handled fairly and with care", and expected to be "in a position to provide a further update in the coming days"
• The Metropolitan Police has confirmed the BBC has made initial contact with the force over the claims, but it says no formal allegation has been made
• Culture Secretary Lucy Frazer spoke to the director general on Sunday about the "deeply concerning" claims, and called for the BBC to be given "space" to investigate
• The BBC's director general says the corporation first became aware of the allegations in May, adding that he is taking the situation "extremely seriously"
• Tim Davie also says new claims of "a different nature" were revealed on Thursday and the BBC is in contact with the family

• In an email to staff, he condemned social media speculation about which presenter is involved

The Sun's latest front page claims the presenter sent "panicked calls" to the young person involved in the paper's revelations, which we'll bring you more on in another post.

Sam Hancock
Live reporter

Hello, thanks for re-joining us the day after an unnamed male BBC presenter was suspended following allegations he paid a teenager thousands of pounds for sexually explicit photos.

The allegations, first reported by the Sun on Friday, external, are that the presenter paid for the photos over a three-year period, starting when the teenager was 17. They are now 20, according to their mother who's spoken to the Sun.

In a statement yesterday, the BBC said it is investigating a complex situation and that it takes the allegations "incredibly seriously".

It came after Culture Secretary Lucy Frazer held urgent talks with the corporation's director general Tim Davie. The Metropolitan Police says it's in touch with the BBC, too.

I'll be taking you through the latest updates this morning, along with my colleagues Thomas Mackintosh and Anna Boyd, as well as recapping you on what happened yesterday. Stay with us.

Rob Corp
Live reporter

We're pausing our live coverage now.

We'll keep our news story updated and you can also read culture and media editor Katie Razzall's thoughts on what this means for the BBC.

And if you are unsure as to why we and other media are not naming the BBC presenter - you can read about that here.

Today's writers were Alys Davies and Adam Durbin. The editors were me and Heather Sharp.

Katie Razzall
Culture and media editor

Tonight the Sun has a new story that has recently been published on its website and will be on its front page tomorrow.

It claims the un-named BBC presenter made what it says were two “panicked calls” to the young person after the Sun’s revelations, allegedly saying "what have you done?" and asking them to ring their mum and get her to "stop the investigation”.

We don’t know the truth of it. The Sun also says the family is upset by the BBC’s statement today - and claims “no-one from the corporation rang them for a proper interview after the initial complaint”.

The BBC said previously it did "actively" attempt to speak to "those who have contacted us in order to seek further detail and understanding of the situation".

"If we get no reply to our attempts or receive no further contact that can limit our ability to progress things but it does not mean our enquiries stop," the corporation said.

On Saturday, the Sun says, the family handed a dossier of evidence to the BBC.