Ofcom has decided not to take action against BBC 6Music presenter George Lamb after he apologised for comparing the Travelling community to asbestos during a broadcast. The media regulator received six complaints about the incident, which occurred on Lamb's daily 10am show on 5 November.
The comments were made during a discussion about American property tycoon Donald Trump's attempt to build a golf course in Scotland and his dispute with local homeowner Michael Forbes. Lamb said, referencing Travellers: 'You ain't moving Travellers off basically. Travellers is like asbestos basically. The whole gaff is getting condemned.'
Ofcom said it considered the matter resolved due to Lamb's on-air apology and action taken by the BBC, which withdrew the recording from iPlayer and re-edited the programme to remove the offensive section. The regulator noted the BBC's acknowledgement of potential offence and the steps taken to mitigate it.
The BBC stated that Lamb's show has a 'loyal following of listeners who understand and enjoy its somewhat quirky format and direction'. This is not the first time Lamb has courted controversy; last year, he faced criticism after Ray Davies of The Kinks ended a phone interview early when Lamb asked questions such as 'Are you bald?' and 'What's your favourite vowel?'
