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Cameron making 'backdoor deals' on press regulation
Josh Halliday guardian.co.uk, Thursday 28 February 2013
DATELINE: 1/3/13
The National Union of Journalists has accused the government of concocting "secret backdoor deals" with the newspaper industry and excluding the public from talks about establishing a new press regulator. The union said it was concerned that Downing Street was conspiring with newspaper owners to produce a regulator heavily controlled by publishers. In a sharply worded statement, the NUJ general secretary, Michelle Stanistreet, accused David Cameron of reneging on promises made to Lord Justice Leveson's inquiry into press standards.
"This is more evidence that we cannot trust David Cameron – we already knew we couldn't trust the newspaper publishers," said Stanistreet.
The NUJ is the latest group to complain about being excluded from talks to establish a reconstituted press regulator. Earlier this week, the lobbying group for victims of press intrusion, Hacked Off, charged the government and newspaper proprietors with perpetrating a "disgraceful stitch-up" over the discussions.
Conservative plans for a verification body set up by royal charter to be empowered to recognise an independent press regulator have hit a deadlock following inter-party talks earlier this month.
Stanistreet said excluding journalists, members of the public and phone-hacking victims from the talks would produce a regulator doomed to the same ineffectiveness as the Press Complaints Commission it is intended to replace.
She added: "They have gone back on their promises to pick up the Leveson recommendations, generally seen as moderate and proportionate, and have conspired together to offer a solution that ignores journalists, excludes the public and the victims of phone hacking and serves only the interests of publishers.
"Journalists want a vibrant lively newspaper industry; this dirty deal will never lead to that."
The NUJ attack came as a leading constitutional lawyer, Lord Pannick QC, warned that plans for a new press regulator backed by royal charter would "confer considerable power on ministers" and provide no protection against future political intervention.
In an opinion commissioned by the newspaper industry, Pannick endorsed the press proposal for a charitable trust to establish a recognition body for the new regulator. He said this would safeguard against future political interference.
Pannick said bodies incorporated by royal charter surrender significant aspects of their internal affairs to ministers via the privy council, which formally grants royal charters.
The exercise of such powers by ministers would be subject to judicial review, Pannick said, but he added: "It is difficult in practice to envisage a court intervening were ministers to decide to change the substantive arrangements."
The emergence of his opinion on the royal charter plan comes a week after he and two other leading QCs, Desmond Browne and Antony White, described proposals to punish newspapers with huge fines as unlawful and "objectionable in principle". That opinion was also commissioned by the newspaper industry.
Last modified: Friday, March 1, 2013
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Previous Leveson Inquiry stories
Leveson's legacy: will investigative journalists face ever greater obstacles?
Campaign rejects 'cave in' to press barons
Labour: Conservative royal charter 'dilutes' Leveson
Labour divided on response to royal charter's press 'verifier'
Lords rebellion means key part of Leveson proposals will be enacted ...
Leveson report: Lords unveil proposals in frustration at lack of progress
Evans backs statutory underpinning
New regulation body could be delayed
Leveson reforms could be made by charitable trust, says industry group
Leveson Recommendations – the Information Commissioner responds and the Press misreports
Leveson data protection plans 'could have chilling effect on journalism'
Leveson is being subverted by Cameron
Leveson report: parties discuss plan to safeguard royal charter on press
Labour asks for party leader's meeting to thrash out Leveson deal
Lord Smith, Simon Jenkins and Lord Phillips named press regulator advisers
Briefing paper on media plurality and ownership
Leveson report: Cameron softens his opposition to statutory underpinning
Analysis of Delaunay
Newspaper editors sign up to Leveson
The Leveson Report: Almost there but...
Lord Justice Leveson left floundering in wake of press proprietors' pre-emptive strike
Leveson: does the sentence fit the crime?
The Prisoner of Fleet Street
Leveson reports
National editors distance themselves from Hunt-Black press reform plan
Lobbying for media reform
Newspapers accused of keeping readers in dark on press regulation
When is a last chance a last chance? Can John Whittingdale explain?
Leveson: the Press skews the debate
NUJ comes out in support of press regulation backed by statute
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Notices
Events & Announcements
World Press Freedom Day
More reporters are currently imprisoned in Turkey than in any other country in the world. Only a matter of weeks ago lawyers failed to persuade a Turkish court to release a 76-year-old journalist from a Turkish internet news station.
World Press Freedom Day on Friday May 3, 2013 is being marked in Britain by a rally to highlight the dangers facing journalists in Turkey and in this podcast, Nicholas Jones speaks to Barry White, Organiser at the Campaign for Press and Broadcasting Freedom, and Sam Bamford, the TUC's policy officer for Eastern Europe and Africa about the importance of a campaign to highlight international press freedom.
The World Press Freedom Day rally is being staged by the National Union of Journalists at the NUJ head office, Gray’s Inn Road, London WC1 on Thursday May 2, 6pm-8pm.
DATELINE: 27/4/13
UK launch of EU media campaign
DATELINE: 13/3/13
The UK launch of a 'European Citizens' Initiative' calling for EU rules against concentration of media power will take place on Thursday March 21 from 11:00am – 12:30pm in Committee Room 4A at the House of Lords, London. Guest speakers will include actor and activist Hugh Grant (pictured), media consultant Claire Enders, Professor Steven Barnett, Barry McCall (President of the NUJ) and Marc Gruber (Director of the European Federation of Journalists).
A European Citizens' Initiative is an official petition, like a Downing Street petition. If it succeeds in gathering a million signatures across the EU, the Commission is obliged to respond.
This petition calls for the EU to act to protect media pluralism and press freedom.
CPBF Annual General Meeting
DATELINE: 1/3/13
Make a note in your diary
Saturday 13 July 2013 from 10.00am
NUJ HQ, 308/312 Gray's Inn Road, London WC1.
Leveson, media ownership, CPBF future work.
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DATELINE: 26/3/10
The media’s job is to inform and entertain us but we rely on them too to tell us what our rulers and representatives are up to. In the run-up to the Iraq war the government used spin and disinformation in the media to create panic and mislead people. The truth is coming out now, but we need stronger, more independent media to be able to scrutinise governments and make informed choices.
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Previous stories
Leveson Inquiry
Leveson's legacy: will investigative journalists face ever greater obstacles?
Campaign rejects 'cave in' to press barons
Labour: Conservative royal charter 'dilutes' Leveson
Labour divided on response to royal charter's press 'verifier'
Lords rebellion means key part of Leveson proposals will be enacted ...
Leveson report: Lords unveil proposals in frustration at lack of progress
Evans backs statutory underpinning
New regulation body could be delayed
Leveson reforms could be made by charitable trust, says industry group
Leveson Recommendations – the Information Commissioner responds and the Press misreports
Leveson data protection plans 'could have chilling effect on journalism'
Leveson is being subverted by Cameron
Leveson report: parties discuss plan to safeguard royal charter on press
Labour asks for party leader's meeting to thrash out Leveson deal
Lord Smith, Simon Jenkins and Lord Phillips named press regulator advisers
Briefing paper on media plurality and ownership
Leveson report: Cameron softens his opposition to statutory underpinning
Analysis of Delaunay
Newspaper editors sign up to Leveson
The Leveson Report: Almost there but...
Lord Justice Leveson left floundering in wake of press proprietors' pre-emptive strike
Leveson: does the sentence fit the crime?
The Prisoner of Fleet Street
Leveson reports
National editors distance themselves from Hunt-Black press reform plan
Lobbying for media reform
Newspapers accused of keeping readers in dark on press regulation
When is a last chance a last chance? Can John Whittingdale explain?
Leveson: the Press skews the debate
NUJ comes out in support of press regulation backed by statute
