ITV has assured that This Morning will proceed as scheduled on Monday, and there are "no plans" to cancel the show."

This is in response to inquiries regarding Phillip Schofield's involvement in an affair with a younger male colleague.

In a statement on Friday, Schofield acknowledged his relationship with an employee during his marriage and admitted to repeatedly lying to conceal it. He resigned from ITV, describing the relationship as "unwise but not illegal."

ITV stated that it had conducted an investigation in 2020 but discovered no substantiated evidence of the affair beyond mere "rumor."

ITV further stated that both Schofield and the junior colleague had vehemently and consistently denied the rumors at the time.

In a confirmation to the BBC on Sunday, legal representatives representing Schofield acknowledged that the two individuals had initially met when the junior colleague was a 15-year-old boy. However, they emphasized that there was no sexual relationship between Schofield and the individual until after the latter had commenced working at This Morning. By that time, the individual had reached the age of 18.

According to The Mail on Sunday, the initial encounter between the presenter and the 15-year-old occurred when Schofield delivered a talk at a theatre school attended by the teenager.

Subsequently, Schofield facilitated an interview for the individual at ITV before their employment began, and the affair allegedly commenced "some time afterwards," as reported by the newspaper.

ITV bosses have been facing questions about whether the programme can survive the scandal.

Former ITV daytime figures, such as Eamonn Holmes and Dan Wootton, said confirmation of the affair raised questions about how much the network's managers knew about the relationship.

An ITV spokesperson said on Sunday: "As we said on the record yesterday, This Morning is not under review and there's no plans for the show to be axed."

They confirmed it would return as normal on Monday, with Alison Hammond and Dermot O'Leary presenting.

ITV did not respond to the BBC when asked about a report in the Sunday People that some daytime staff were planning to go to HR next week to threaten a mass walkout over a series of "ignored complaints".

Meanwhile Dr Ranj Singh, who worked for This Morning for a decade, criticised the "toxic" culture at the programme, saying the issues "go far beyond" Schofield.

He said he last worked on the show two years ago, having found himself used "less and less" after raising concerns about how people were being treated there.

Speaking on Twitter, he said he "did not know the truth about what was going on with Phillip", but added: "It takes more than one person to create a culture."

On Sunday evening, ITV responded saying it was sorry to read the post. It added that after a complaint from Dr Ranj there had been an external review which "found no evidence of bullying or discrimination".

Schofield had already quit This Morning last weekend after reports of a rift with co-star Holly Willoughby. Schofield has insisted his departure was unrelated to the affair.

She said on Saturday it was "very hurtful" to discover her former co-host had lied to her about his affair.

"When reports of this relationship first surfaced, I asked Phil directly if this was true and was told it was not," she said.

Willoughby is on an "extended half term break" until 5 June.