Winning by a neck - Telegraph One small sign betokens hope for improvement at the battered BBC. Tim Davie, the acting director-general, who arrived at work on his first morning tieless, now admits he looked "silly," and has fished out a suitable length of silk from the wardrobe. He is to be congratulated. It is not a question of Mr Davie's looking more agreeable. It is a matter of taking the people with whom he works seriously. To wear a suit and tie means readiness to do business, not to drift off on a picnic. Military officers, judges or the Speaker of the House of Commons have been expected to wear special clothes for the sake of their roles. Improper dress is not a fashion crime but a demeaning of the role. Public servants now seem very comfortable with stratospheric salaries. A silken halter during public appearances is little enough to bear in return.