The four strong editorial board at public broadcaster NOS Sport is stepping down following a string of allegations about bullying, discrimination and sexual harassment.

In addition, a new independent investigation is being started into dozens of reports of behaviour which may have crossed the boundary of what is acceptable, NOS chief Gerard Timmer said on Thursday afternoon. The reports date back up to 20 years.

The resignations will not be immediate, to guarantee to continuity of sports reporting, but will take place over time.

The news follows the publication of a report by an independent integrity officer, which also showed people reporting problems felt they were not taken seriously enough.

The research started in December, in the wake of revelations about popular chat show De Wereld Draait Door, whose star presenter Matthijs van Nieuwkerk was the subject of extensive allegations of bullying

Commercial broadcaster RTL has also announced plans to investigate possible integrity and bullying issues.