On 6 November, "Channel 4 News" reported that Sir Peter Morrison, a former aide to Margaret Thatcher and MP for Chester, who died in 1995, had been 'seen' driving a boy away from the Bryn Estyn home. The Conservative Party said that they were investigating the claims. "The Guardian" reported that references made to the alleged involvement of another prominent Conservative politician may have been the result of confusion over the identities of two people sharing the same surname. Lord McAlpine subsequently released a statement denying the allegations and describing them as 'seriously defamatory'. A week after the "Newsnight" programme, on 9 November, the BBC apologised "unreservedly" for its broadcast, after Steve Messham apologised for the mistaken identity. The Director-General of the BBC, George Entwistle, stated that he had been unaware of the content of the report before it was broadcast, and, after further criticism in the media, resigned on 10 November.