Tom Jones has claimed that ITV "made the decision" to "fire" him as a judge from The Voice UK.
Jones, who has served as a judge on the popular singing contest since its debut in 2012, had added that he was "not thrilled" about what he had been offered by ITV instead of being a judge. This also comes following rumours that the Welsh singer may not return for the upcoming series.
Sharing a statement on Instagram, Jones wrote: "To be clear, I did not want to leave The Voice as I love the show and really appreciate the audience. ITV made this decision - obviously a while ago, and I was told just recently".
"The reason given is because of a financial difficulty with insurance.
He continued: "They now say in the press they wanted to 'refresh' the show, and with a new coaching line-up, there wouldn’t be a chair for me.
"They are offering a much-reduced role where I would make an appearance but without being actually involved from the start, and I’m not thrilled about that".
"So the only thing I know right now, is that there’s never a good time to fire an 86-year-old who’s still pretty good at his job", the 'It's Not Unusual' singer added.
A spokesperson did add: "We have loved working with Sir Tom Jones over the past nine years on The Voice UK.
"While he will no longer be a full-time coach on series 15, we continue to talk to Sir Tom and his team about his involvement in the next series". (All quotes according to RTÉ).
View this post on Instagram
Last year, Tom Jones was forced to pull the plug on a show in Germany due to illness.
The singer cancelled the show just hours before being due to go out on stage, confirming that he had been suffering with a respiratory issue. More on this story here.
