Keeping The Press Under Control

Press freedom is under threat – at least according to recent newspaper reports. What are they so worried about?

Why is this issue surfacing now?

The Government, having for years held off enforcing the recommendations of the Leveson Inquiry, now feels obliged to come to a decision on the issue. The key recommendation of Lord Justice Leveson’s 2012 report into the ethics of British journalism involved the setting up of an independent body to adjudicate alleged press abuses – such as libelling members of the public and intruding into their privacy. The Government’s dilemma is whether or not to “commence” Section 40 of the Crime and Courts Act 2013, a controversial measure which has been passed by Parliament but not yet been made active.

What’s so controversial about it?

The potentially ruinous consequences which face any newspaper that will not accept the authority of a “recognised” regulator. Section 40 decrees that newspapers which refuse to do so and which are then taken to court over libel or privacy issues would be liable not only for their own costs, but for the claimant’s too, regardless of the case’s outcome – getting the facts right would be no defence. Section 40 has been widely condemned as an open invitation for anyone criticised by a paper to make a claim against it. Campaign group Index on Censorship says this would make “investigative journalists think twice about publishing a story for fear of being hit with crippling costs”.

So why did Parliament vote to pass it?