Michael Smyth: Government appoints first NI BBC Board member since 2017

Michael Smyth is a senior lawyer who has written legal textbooks and had a number of regulatory roles

The government has appointed a leading lawyer as the first Northern Ireland member of the BBC Board for several years.

Michael Smyth will sit on the 14-member board, which governs the BBC, for a four-year term until 2027.

There had been no Northern Ireland representative on the board since the BBC's charter was renewed in 2017.

The collapse of the Stormont Executive had been partly responsible for the gap, as it had a role in the process.

But legislation passed at Westminster to give Stormont civil servants power to make decisions has enabled Mr Smyth's appointment to go ahead.

The BBC Board chair Richard Sharp recently resigned after breaking rules over dealings with Boris Johnson ahead of his appointment.

According to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) Mr Smyth has not "declared any significant political activity" during the past five years.

The BBC said the appointment had been delayed due to the absence of a Northern Ireland Executive

Under the terms of its 10-year-charter, the BBC must have a Northern Ireland representative on its governing board.

But the role had not been filled for over six years.

Mr Smyth is a Northern Ireland-born senior lawyer, who has written legal textbooks and has also had a number of regulatory roles.

The chair of the BBC Board and four non-executive members for the four nations of the UK are appointed by the King on the recommendation of the government.

Mr Smyth was appointed by King Charles, following a recommendation from the UK government after consultation with the Department for Communities (DfC) in Northern Ireland.

In its release announcing his appointment, the BBC said it had been "delayed mainly due to the absence of a power-sharing executive in Northern Ireland."

Mr Smyth will be paid £38,000 a year during his four-year term.