Birt's promotion to Director-General in 1992 caused controversy when it was revealed he was employed on a freelance consultancy basis. Under political and public pressure, Birt became a BBC employee. He had to sell his shares in LWT, losing out on a windfall of what would have been several million pounds when it was bought by Granada in 1994. "The Sunday Times" later revealed that Birt had been a member of the Labour Party at the time of his appointment, a concern to Conservatives who had already expressed concerns about alleged left-wing bias at the organisation.