ITV boss Dame Carolyn McCall was asked why she and Holy Willoughby were 'the only people' at the station not to hear about Phillip Schofield's affair at a parliamentary hearing on Wednesday.
Dame Carolyn faced the Culture, Media and Sport Committee after Phillip Schofield stepped down from ITV following his admission he had an "unwise" but "not illegal" affair with a young colleague.
The ITV boss wrote a letter to culture secretary Lucy Frazer, Culture, Media and Sport Committee chair Dame Caroline Dinenage and Ofcom's chief executive Dame Melanie Dawes, to confirm the broadcaster had asked a barrister to carry out an external review after the scandal broke.
Carolyn was asked: "Are you telling us that everyone else knew what was going on? But somehow you and Holly Willoughby were the only ones who did not know?"
"In every company I've ever worked my track record [shows] I’ve put people at the centre I've always treated people well. I've always wanted people to come into a place where they feel comfortable, where they can speak up where they can speak out, where they can be themselves, and where they're happy to come to work," the ITV boss replied.
"One of the reasons we asked KC to come in and look at this the whole thing is because we will always want to learn, to listen, to act. So whatever emerges from the KC inquiry, we will learn from it because there will be lessons now no organisation can do anything perfectly and we certainly are not saying we have."
The 61-year-old chief executive faced questions from MPs alongside ITV managing director Kevin Lygo and general counsel and company secretary Kyla Mullins about the This Morning row during Wednesday morning’s Culture, Media and Sport Committee session.
Phillip resigned from ITV and was dropped by his talent agency YMU after admitting to an affair with a younger male colleague on the show.
Since the scandal broke, This Morning has been plagued with allegations of “toxicity”.
The session will cover ITV’s initial investigation into rumours regarding Schofield, the ITV-commissioned review into the facts by barrister Jane Mulcahy KC, the working culture on This Morning and other productions, as well as ITV’s use of non-disclosure agreements (NDAs) and its whistleblowing policy.
The broadcaster’s approach to its duty of care, including support for those who have left the organisation, will also be discussed with the panel on Wednesday.
