Culture Secretary Oliver Dowden has described as “very concerning” the revelation by the JC that a BBC World News journalist has used an anonymous social media account to mount attacks on Emma Barnett, following a broadcast by the radio presenter on the impact of antisemitism on her family.

The BBC has confirmed it has begun an “urgent investigation” into the conduct of Nimesh Thaker, who has worked as a news reporter and producer at the BBC for over 20 years.

Mr Thaker also used the Twitter account, set up under the pseudonym Not That Bothered, to support posts by Kerry-Anne Mendoza and Jackie Walker, both of whom have been at the centre of antisemitism allegations.

 In further posts from the same account, the BBC reporter also suggested Israel was a “racist” and a “white supremacist state” and attacked the BBC Director General as a “white male Tory”.

Mr Dowden told the JC: “We are an open and tolerant society and there is no place for antisemitism on or offline. These allegations are very concerning and, as the nation’s broadcaster, we expect BBC journalists to adhere to the highest standards of impartiality.”

The JC’s initial report on Mr Thaker was published on Tuesday, the same day that the BBC’s new director-general Tim Davie started his new role.

In a bid to restore the BBC’s reputation for impartiality, Mr Davie is expected to tell staff this week that journalists must not allow personal politics to impact on their work.

Mr Davie  — who has replaced Lord Hall in the director-general role — was previously the chief executive of BBC Worldwide, now BBC Studios.

He is known to be concerned about claims of political bias at the BBC —including accusations of left-wing bias in comedy shows.

A statement issued by the corporation on Wednesday following the JC’s report said: “The BBC takes allegations of this nature extremely seriously, and while we cannot comment on individual staff issues, we have robust processes in place to investigate any such matters with urgency.”