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Simon Jack (born 10 May 1971) is an English business journalist and news correspondent. He is currently the business editor for BBC News, known for appearing on BBC Breakfast until September 2011 and on BBC Radio 4's Today programme. He has also presented business and financial podcasts for The Daily Telegraph.

Education

Simon Jack was born on 10 May 1971 in London. He attended Merchant Taylors' Boys' School, Crosby, Merseyside, and graduated from St John's College, Oxford with a BA in Philosophy, Politics and Economics. Of his time at the University of Oxford, Jack said: “I did the same degree as David Cameron. I was a contemporary of George Osborne. I knew him a little bit. He was well-known at university and his notoriety of his membership of certain clubs is well known – like the Bullingdon. I wasn't a member of any of those."

Career

Before entering journalism, Jack worked for a decade as a corporate and investment banker in London, New York City and Bermuda. He has said that he neither liked the work, nor showed much ability at it. In 2003 he joined the BBC's business and economics unit and since then has worked on BBC Radio 4's Today Programme and Radio 5 Live's Wake Up to Money. He has also presented business and financial podcasts for The Daily Telegraph.

Jack was frequently seen on British television during the fortnight beginning on 7 September 2008 during which he reported for BBC News, the BBC News Channel and Working Lunch on the banking crisis that saw the Federal takeover of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the Bankruptcy of Lehman Brothers, the bailout of AIG and the Lloyds TSB takeover of HBOS. He was often seen reporting from the London Stock Exchange, Canary Wharf and outside the offices of HBOS and Lehman Brothers in London.

Jack replaced Declan Curry as business presenter for BBC Breakfast in October 2008. In April 2010, he presented BBC Breakfast alongside Sian Williams while regular presenter Bill Turnbull followed the 2010 general election campaign trail. In September 2011, he left the BBC Breakfast team to join BBC Radio 4's Today.

On 13 April 2015 Jack, whose father killed himself, appeared in a BBC Panorama series relating to the survivors of suicide which investigated why more middle-aged men kill themselves than any other group.

On 5 February 2016, Jack was appointed the BBC's Business Editor, replacing the promoted Kamal Ahmed.

On 3 July 2023, Jack sat next to Dame Alison Rose, the chief executive of NatWest bank at the BBC Correspondents’ Charity Dinner. The following day Jack claimed that Nigel Farage had his bank account at Coutts closed for falling "below the financial threshold required to hold an account". However after submitting a subject access request in July, Farage published a 40-page internal document from Coutts, which contained minutes from a meeting of the bank's Wealth Reputational Risk Committee on 17 November 2022, describing Farage as a "disingenuous grifter" who promoted "xenophobic, chauvinistic and racist views", and said his "views were at odds with our position as an inclusive organisation", with "risk factors including... controversial public statements which were felt to conflict with the bank’s purpose", whilst financially his account's "economic contribution is now sufficient to retain on a commercial basis”.

On 24 July 2023, Jack issued an apology to Farage on Twitter for the story. Farage accepted the apology. Jack said his story was "from a trusted and senior source. However, the information turned out to be incomplete and inaccurate." On 25 July, Rose admitted to 'serious error of judgement' in discussing Farage's Coutts accounts with Jack, revealing that she had been the source of the story.

Personal life

Jack lives in Notting Hill and is married to Suzy Barry,; he is a son-in-law of the composer John Barry.

References

1. Wilson, Helen. "Simon Jack joins Today". Media News. FeaturesExec. Archived from the original on 22 January 2013. Retrieved 8 October 2011.
2. "Simon Jack – Chartwell Speakers Bureau". Expert Keynote and Motivational Speakers | Chartwell Speakers. Retrieved 13 February 2019.
3. ^ Echo, Liverpool (18 November 2010). "'Merchant Taylors gave me the confidence' – TV presenter Simon Jack". liverpoolecho. Retrieved 13 February 2019.
4. "Breakfast: Simon Jack". BBC News. 13 November 2008. Retrieved 27 April 2016.
5. Johnson, Mark (18 November 2010). "'Merchant Taylors gave me the confidence' – TV presenter Simon Jack". Crosby Herald. Archived from the original on 14 January 2012.
6. Wilson, Helen. "Simon Jack joins Today". ResponseSource. Retrieved 9 November 2024.
7. "A silence that kills men". BBC. 13 April 2015.
8. "Simon Jack appointed BBC's new Business Editor". BBC. 5 February 2016.
9. "Bank chief Dame Alison sat next to BBC journalist night before he tweeted claim about Nigel Farage". Telegraph.
10. "Nigel Farage bank account shut for falling below wealth limit". BBC News. Retrieved 4 July 2023.
11. @BBCSimonJack (4 July 2023). "Nigel Farage fell below the financial threshold required to hold an account at Coutts" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
12. "Farage affair is 'a monumental PR disaster' for exclusive bank Coutts". The Guardian. Retrieved 21 July 2023.
13. "The dossier that blows apart the Coutts claims about closing Nigel Farage's account". The Telegraph. 18 July 2023. Retrieved 18 July 2023.
14. "Sunak pledges crackdown on bank 'blacklisting'". www.ft.com. Retrieved 19 July 2023.
15. "Nigel Farage: BBC apologises to Farage over account closure story". BBC News. 24 July 2023. Retrieved 24 July 2023.
16. "NatWest boss 'made serious error of judgement' in discussing Farage bank accounts with BBC reporter". Sky News. Retrieved 25 July 2023.
17. Echo, Liverpool (18 November 2010). "'Merchant Taylors gave me the confidence' – TV presenter Simon Jack". liverpoolecho.
18. "Bond composer Barry dies aged 77". BBC News. 31 January 2011.

• Living people
• Alumni of St John's College, Oxford
• English television presenters
• BBC newsreaders and journalists
• British business and financial journalists
• People educated at Merchant Taylors' Boys' School, Crosby
• 1971 births