Ross Kemp has admitted he’s wary of the decision to release BBC stars’ salaries, claiming he believes there’s an “agenda” behind it.
On Wednesday (19 July), the BBC’s annual review will be released, which for the first time will include the salaries of any of the broadcaster’s stars who earn more than £150,000 a year.
Appearing on ‘Good Morning Britain’ prior to the publication of the report, Ross told presenters Susanna Reid and Piers Morgan: “I think some people will be unhappy [when they discover the stars’ pay], and that’s understandable.
“But you have to think about the agenda behind this. Is it a government agenda to rock the BBC’s ship?”
The BBC previously revealed that only one third of the BBC’s top earners were women, once again highlighting the gender pay gap in the entertainment industry.
Ross also addressed this issue during his interview, particularly as a former employee of the BBC.
He said: “We didn’t wear t-shirts with our salaries on [during his time at ‘EastEnders’ but I guess there would have been parity between male and females – I don’t know.
“When you go to drama school for instance, they will generally cast more men than women in a class because comparatively there are more male parts than there are female.
“But if you look at management in TV, there are a lot more women, I believe, than men – and rightly so. I think there should be parity.
“I don’t think your section should dictate if you get more pay than someone else. It should be your ability to do the job.”
Last week, Ross spoke to HuffPost UK on ‘Build’ about the issue of low voter turnout, revealing that he is in favour of making voting mandatory.
‘Good Morning Britain’ airs every weekday from 6am on ITV.