A TELEVISION broadcaster has come under fire for rehiring a senior executive less than a year after it gave him a redundancy package worth more than half a million dollars.

Michael Wakelin, who was head of religious programs at the BBC, has since returned to the broadcaster to advise on religious affairs since receiving a £364,000 ($590,000) pay-off in March last year.

He has been working one day a week on a report examining how the BBC portrays religion in its programs.

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The Methodist lay preacher is among 204 BBC managers who have been paid more than £100,000 in redundancy payments in the past three years.

The corporation is currently in the middle of a massive cost-cutting program and is to lose 114 out of 634 senior managers with pay freezes for its executive board members.

Mr Wakelin refused to comment on his severance package and subsequent re-employment but John Whittingdale, the chairman of the Government's culture, media and sport committee, said the payments showed the need for more scrutiny over the BBC's spending.

"Any outside observer would find it extraordinary that the BBC is willing to spend such huge amounts of license fee payers' money on redundancy payments," he said.

"This shows a casualness with license fee payers' money which I'm afraid is all too typical of the BBC and is further evidence as to the necessity of much stricter control."