Press regulation: Papers lose Privy Council injunction bid
Publishers fear the royal charter could allow governments to encroach on press freedom
Newspaper
publishers have lost a bid to stop ministers going to the Privy Council
later to seek the Queen's approval for a royal charter on UK press
regulation.
At the High Court, publishers argued the Privy Council had not considered their own rival charter fairly.But two judges refused them an injunction and said there were no grounds for a judicial review.
The publishers have said they are to appeal against the court's ruling.
Following the phone-hacking affair and subsequent Leveson Inquiry into the ethics and practises of newspapers, politicians and the press drew up their own charters.
Both propose a "recognition panel" to oversee a press self-regulation committee with powers to impose fines of up to £1m on newspapers for wrongdoing.
The press charter would require industry-wide approval for any amendments, while the politicians' version - backed by the three mainstream parties - could be changed by a two-thirds majority in Parliament.
Some in the media claim this could let governments encroach on press freedom.
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Brian Cathcart Hacked OffWhat Mr Murdoch and his friends are clinging to is the right to lie, twist, bully and intrude, inflicting misery on innocent people”
Culture Secretary Maria Miller
said: "Both the press and the government think that the best way forward
is for us to have self-regulation of the press and the principles for
that are set out in a royal charter.
"The decisions today mean that we can move forward with that
and we will continue to work with the industry to make sure this is a
success."The most important thing is that we retain the freedom of the press which is such an important part of our democratic process but that we have a way of giving people redress if there have been mistakes and errors made and I think that's a shared objective between the press and the government."
'Good for journalism' In a joint statement, the newspapers said: "We are deeply disappointed with this decision, which denies the newspaper and magazine industry the right properly to make their case that the Privy Council's decision to reject their charter was unfair and unlawful.
"This is a vital constitutional issue and we will be taking our case for judicial review - of the Privy Council's decisions on both the industry charter and the cross-party charter - to the Court of Appeal."
It is unclear whether publishers will be able to seek an appeal this afternoon, before the royal charter goes before the Privy Council at 17:30 GMT.
The Privy Council, whose active members must be government ministers, meets in private to formally advise the Queen to approve "Orders" which have already been agreed by ministers.
Earlier, Roger Alton, executive editor of the Times, told BBC Radio 4's Today programme: "The idea that somehow a deal stitched up between a few politicians over pizzas and a handful of lobbyists from Hacked Off, which is essentially an anti-newspaper group, the idea that such a deal is the thing that now controls the press, which is one of the most vital safeguards in our democracy, I find extraordinarily depressing, very sad... It will be resisted."
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Paul Connew former Sunday Mirror editorAt the end of the day, this could be a royal charter that no-one is signing up to”
Hacked Off's executive director
Brian Cathcart said: "The royal charter is good for journalism, good for
freedom of speech, and - vitally - good for the public.
"What Mr Murdoch and his friends are clinging to is the right
to lie, twist, bully and intrude, inflicting misery on innocent people.
That has to stop."Standards code Paul Connew, former editor of the Sunday Mirror, said: "This is not simply about the big national newspapers. This is being supported by over 1,000 local and regional newspapers and by the entire magazine world in fact.
"So, at the end of the day, this could be a royal charter that no-one is signing up to. What happens next?"
Under the royal charter, the Press Complaints Commission would be replaced by a new regulator with greater powers, and a watchdog - the recognition panel - which will check the regulator remains independent.
The regulator, set up by the press but without any editors on the board, will draw up a standards code and can impose fines of up to £1m.
It will also provide a speedy arbitration service to deal with complaints.
The recognition panel will be made up of between four and eight members, none of whom can be journalists, civil servants or MPs.
Media organisations will be free to sign up or stay outside the new system of regulation.
