London: The chairman of the BBC Trust has ruled out an independent investigation into alleged abuses by Jimmy Savile.

In a letter to Conservative MP Rob Wilson, Lord Patten said such an inquiry was not necessary despite the gravity of the allegations against the BBC presenter and DJ, which are being investigated by Scotland Yard.

Lord Patten, who has made no public comment on the scandal, also insisted no pressure was exerted on the editor of Newsnight to pull an investigation alleging that Savile had assaulted girls as young as 14.

ITV pursued the story and since its shocking documentary was broadcast last Wednesday, more than 40 alleged victims have come forward. BBC insiders have told The Mail on Sunday that their investigation, which began soon after Savile’s death last October, was shelved to avoid an embarrassing clash with tribute programmes over Christmas and New Year.

They say the decision was influenced by new director-general George Entwistle, who was then in charge of BBC1 and BBC2.

Wilson, MP for Reading East, wrote to Lord Patten last week calling for an independent inquiry into why the BBC pulled the investigation. Newsnight’s editor, Peter Rippon, has claimed he alone made the decision on purely editorial grounds.

Wilson told The Mail on Sunday: ‘[Chris Patten] wrote back to me saying the police were looking into the allegations and the BBC had offered their full support. He did not agree to sanction an independent investigation into wider allegations. He said that George Entwistle had reassured him no pressure was exerted on the editor of Newsnight to drop the story.’

This is not the belief of those inside the BBC. One Newsnight journalist said: ‘It was obvious from the initial reaction of Peter Rippon that this was seen as a big story and he was very, very positive about it. But all of a sudden, a few days before the planned transmission date, we were told the film would not be going out.

‘We gather the decision leads directly to George Entwistle. The general belief was that he didn’t want the Newsnight report being screened when the BBC had a number of Jimmy Savile tributes in their schedule.’

Another source said: ‘If there are stories which have legal issues or are sensitive, it is very unlikely the senior figures in news and vision would not be consulted.’

Last night, Wilson confirmed he would be pursuing the matter and said: ‘It appears, as the days go by, that Jimmy Savile was rotten. The question is how much did that rottenness infect the BBC?’

Last night a BBC Trust spokesperson said: ‘As Lord Patten wrote to Rob Wilson, the Trust shares the horror felt by the general public at allegations that anything of this sort could have happened on BBC premises or have been carried out by anyone working for the Corporation.

‘The director-general has asked the BBC Investigations Unit to make contact with all the police forces in receipt of allegations and provide full support to any lines of inquiry.

‘The Trust is satisfied this is the most appropriate action to take, particularly given that the allegations involve criminal activity.’