PinkNews director Dr Anthony James has been suspended from the NHS, after a BBC investigation heard allegations of sexual misconduct at the publisher.
Bedfordshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust said it had taken the decision to suspend Dr James from his position as non-executive associate director pending further information.
Representatives for PinkNews founder Benjamin Cohen and his husband, the site’s chief operating officer, Dr James, told the BBC they were unable to make a statement at this time regarding the incident. Original claims submitted to the BBCBut their position is that these allegations are false.
The BBC has contacted Dr James’ representatives regarding his suspension.
A BBC investigation spoke to more than 30 former and current employees of PinkNews, the world’s largest LGBT news site.
They said a culture of heavy drinking at the company led to instances of sexual misconduct and inappropriate behavior from Mr. Cohen and Dr. James.
As part of the investigation, the BBC spoke to five former members of the PinkNews team who said they saw Dr James kissing and touching a younger colleague, who was described as “too drunk to consent”.
Others described a toxic work culture and fear of speaking out given that the site’s two most senior managers were a married couple.
When representatives for Mr Cohen and Dr James were contacted about the original investigation, they told the BBC they were unable to make a statement at this time, but their position was that the allegations were false.
After the investigation was published, more than 10 former PinkNews employees came forward to share their experiences working there.
In addition to his role at PinkNews, Dr James also worked part-time as an Associate Non-Executive Director of the NHS.
The role, described by the NHS as a “step-up” role, is designed to allow people with the potential to become non-executive directors to gain more experience of working on an NHS board.
Bedfordshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust told the BBC it was “aware of the allegations made by the BBC against Dr Anthony James, an associate non-executive director, in his role as chief operating officer of PinkNews”.
A Foundation spokesperson added: “Following these allegations, we took the decision on Tuesday 10 December to suspend him from his non-executive role pending further information.”
There is no suggestion of any wrongdoing during Dr James’ time with the NHS.
The BBC has been unable to verify how much Dr James received for the job, but an advert for the role has been published on the NHS Careers website in 2023 offering a salary of £7,500.
The BBC contacted Dr. James’s representatives to comment on his suspension from work.
Additional reporting by Christian Johnson
