BBC reduces star pay by £9.5m

According to BBC, the BBC's annual report  revealed 16 individuals were paid more than £500,000 in the financial year 2011 - 2012, three fewer than the year before.

Meanwhile, director general Mark Thompson earned £622,000 in the last financial year - down from £779,000.

He earned 15 times more than the median pay of a BBC employee.

Thompson is stepping down from his role in September and will be succeeded by the BBC's current director of Vision, George Entwistle.

He will be paid significantly less - £450,000 in his first year.

In total, the combined salaries of the BBC's executive directors fell from £5,714,000 in 2010-11 to £2,560,000, largely due to the number of board members being reduced from 13 to seven.

Two of the seven who stepped down are still on the BBC payroll - Lucy Adams, who is the corporation's head of business operations, and Peter Salmon, the director of BBC North.

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