Irish newspaper slammed for antisemitic column on BBC pay gap

The Irish edition of The Sunday Times has been accused of antisemitism after it published an article suggesting that BBC presenters, Claudia Winkleman and Vanessa Feltz are well paid because they are Jewish.

The piece, written by Kevin Myers, was removed from the online version of the newspaper after it provoked huge backlash from upset readers.

However, the article still remains in the printed verison of the the newspaper across Ireland today.

The article on the row over the gender pay gap in the BBC, titled “Sorry ladies, equal pay has to be earned,” read:

“I note that two of the best-paid women presenters in the BBC – Claudia Winkleman and Vanessa Feltz, with whose, no doubt, sterling work I am tragically unacquainted – are Jewish. Good for them.

“Jews are not generally noted for their insistence on selling their talent for the lowest possible price, which is the most useful measure there is of inveterate, lost-with-all-hands stupidity. I wonder, who are their agents? If they’re the same ones that negotiated the pay for the women on the lower scales, then maybe the latter have found their true value in the marketplace.”

The outspoken columnist has also been accused of sexism after he argued that men work harder, get sick less frequently and do not get pregnant.

Frank Fitzgibbon, editor of The Sunday Times Ireland, said:

"As the editor of the Ireland edition, I take full responsibility for this error of judgement.

"This newspaper abhors anti-Semitism and did not intend to cause offence to Jewish people."

The Campaign Against Anti Semitism asked for confirmation that Kevin Myers will never again work for a News UK title, and that the apology will appear in the print edition.