BBC STAR PAY PACKETS REVEALED: CORPORATION PAYS £229M FOR 'TALENT'

Presenters who are paid out of budgets awarded by the BBC to independent production companies were not included in the calculations.

Critics believe that factoring in these payments would push the total figure up to as much as £290million.

Yesterday, the chairman of the BBC Trust said the Corporation must be willing to walk away from negotiations with top stars.

Sir Michael Lyons said the BBC must bring on more new talent from “all parts of the nation” rather than sign up the usual expensive faces.

He said there would be an end to “excessive salaries”, stating: “We are simply not going to see what the public regard as excessive salaries, so (the BBC) must be harder in negotiations and much more willing to walk away.”

The BBC has refused to disclose individual salaries despite intense pressure from MPs and licence fee payers.

But the Corporation has unveiled the businesses expenses of 107 of its most senior staff.

A total of £188,000 was claimed in overall expenses between July and September 2009, a monthly average per executive of £586.

For the first time, the BBC has also published a register of the gifts and hospitality received by senior managers.

Director-general Mark Thompson attended Glyndebourne, the Wimbledon Ladies Final, the Chelsea Flower Show and the Royal Box at Ascot with his wife last year - as well as the British Grand Prix with his son.

Mr Thompson, who earns £664,000 a year, has claims ranging from 57p for a parking meter to £5,616 spent through the BBC’s central bookings system for a flight to Seoul.

The expenses of Jana Bennett, director of BBC Vision, include £38.48 for a “sympathy gift for a key presenter” and £1,254 on six nights at Sunset Boulevard Hotel in Los Angeles for meetings with co-producers and studio heads.

She spent £2,392 on taxis through the BBC central bookings service and £106 through expenses.

Eric Huggers, director of future media and technology, spent £7,514.80 on a flight to Seoul last year and £4,984 on taxis between July and September. There were 13 fares that totalled more than £100 each. The biggest single fare was £627.37.

Peter Johnston, director of BBC Northern Ireland, claimed £456.20 for staff entertainment on drinks for a table at the Sony Awards at the Grosvenor House Hotel.

Menna Richards, director of BBC Wales, claimed £435 for a taxi on one day.

A BBC spokeswoman said a freelance driver employed on an ad hoc basis for longer journeys is also categorised as a “taxi” on the central expenses system.

She said: “Such journeys would sometimes include other members of the BBC Wales board as well as the director and offer value for money in comparison with the cost of travelling by rail.”

Roger Wright, controller of Radio 3 and director of BBC Proms, spent £1,459 on taxis, plus a further £1,599.83 on those which were centrally booked. Nine of these were over £100.

His claims also included £470.87 for lunch for Radio 3 presenters.

Andy Parfitt, controller of Radio 1, 1Xtra, Asian Network and BBC Switch, put in for £509.05 at the Sony Awards.

His hospitality included two tickets to the Mercury Prize and he spent £820 on internal hospitality on three monthly team briefings.

John O’Connell, Policy Analyst at the TaxPayers’ Alliance, told Express.co.uk: "The BBC has not gone far enough.

"Licence-fee payers deserve nothing less than full transparency and should have the right to see how much each celebrity earns, not just the total amount.

"The BBC needs to prioritise the hard-working people that so generously fund it each year and make it properly accountable to taxpayers.”