13 Jun 12 | Leveson Inquiry
Deputy prime minister Nick Clegg has called for statutory backing of a reformed press regulator, while making the case for protecting press freedom.
Clegg told the Leveson Inquiry this morning that public confidence needed to be restored in the British press following the phone hacking scandal, but said a solution could “work in parallel”, noting that reforms to press regulation should be “balanced against those enshrining the freedom of the press and the ability of journalists to go after the truth without fear or impediment.”
“A little tweak here and there of a fundamentally flawed model is not going to solve this,” Clegg said, adding later that the recommendations Lord Justice Leveson is due to make in the autumn must lead to change that would celebrate and protect press freedom rather than denigrate it.
The Lib Dem leader said a statutory role should be in the “background” of any regulatory reforms, suggesting statute could play a part in incentivising or cajoling media groups to join into a reformed regulator.
Clegg said he had not yet seen a “convincing case for independent, voluntary regulation of the press” be made, referring to the Irish model as a “fascinating” example.
He made a strong case for supplementing regulatory reform with a stronger definition of the public interest to help guide and protect reporters. “If the press has confidence in a public interest that protects them,” Clegg said, it would “allow them to be a bit more comfortable with the unavoidable reforms of being held to account that they are anxious about.”
While he admitted that a “chilling effect” on press freedom would mean the country would be “losing something very precious”, he branded the claim — as alluded to by education secretary Michael Gove — that the Inquiry is chilling journalists as “preposterous”.
Despite asking his party to abstain on a vote in the Commons today over the future of Jeremy Hunt, Clegg defended the culture secretary’s handling of the £8bn BSkyB bid, arguing that Hunt had given the Inquiry a “full, good and convincing” account of how he handled the bid for the takeover of the satellite broadcaster.
Yet, reminiscent of business secretary Vince Cable’s claim that “veiled threats” had been made to the Lib Dems in connection with News Corp’s takeover bid, Clegg told the Inquiry that his colleague Norman Lamb had told him he had been warned that the party could expect “unfavourable treatment” from the Murdoch papers if they were not open to the bid.
“Norman was quite agitated about that”, Clegg said.
The Inquiry continues this afternoon with evidence from Scottish first minister Alex Salmond.
Follow Index on Censorship’s coverage of the Leveson Inquiry on Twitter – @IndexLeveson
04 Apr 12 | Uncategorized
Ken Clarke, the British Justice Secretary, has been forced to defend government plans to extend the scope of secret trials. The proposals would allow ministers, rather than judges, to order the hearing of sensitive civil cases to be conducted in secret. In a radio interview this morning, Clarke described the last government as “far too authoritarian” and said his views on civil liberties issues were in line with his Liberal Democrat coalition partners. Yet, Clarke’s interview was forced after the Joint Committee on Human Rights described his department’s plans as a “radical departure from long standing traditions of justice” and in light of the security situation the plans “simply aren’t justified”.
The Joint Committee heard damning evidence on the government’s proposals contained within the Justice Green Paper, including concerns on the impact on free expression and open justice from Index on Censorship.
After the committee’s findings, Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg made clear his reservations — stating no inquests should be held in secret. Rumours abound that the Ministry of Justice will be forced to back down due to the report and the intervention of the Deputy Prime Minister. Civil libertarians in the Conservative party are also increasingly disgruntled by illiberal policies such as the leaked “data snooping” proposals and attempts to curtail the Freedom of Information Act.
The Joint Committee’s report makes interesting reading. Echoing Index’s submission and the evidence of other human rights organisations, the Committee argued that the broadness of what could be made secret was not justifiable:
The emphasis in the Secretary of State’s Foreword to the Green Paper is almost exclusively on the security and intelligence agencies and national security… The proposals in the Green Paper, however, are not confined to contexts concerning intelligence information or other material concerning national security. Rather, they relate to the disclosure of any “sensitive material” the disclosure of which may harm the “public interest”.
Indeed, it found no justification for the changes the government pushed for in inquests, stating:
We do not consider that the Government has produced any evidence to demonstrate the need to introduce fundamental changes to the way in which inquests are conducted
Legal expert Joshua Rozenberg believes the Green Paper was an attempt by the UK government to rebuild trust between their security services and their US counterparts since the Binyam Mohamed case. Guantanamo detainee Mohamed successfully sued the UK government for his mistreatment whilst held by the US which led to the disclosure of intelligence implicating that government in torture.
Now that there is serious public disquiet from within the government will Clark re-assess these misconstrued proposals — or is international pressure from partners enough to undermine the UK’s “traditions of justice”?
30 Sep 11 | Uncategorized
The German chancellor and UK Deputy Prime Minister pledged more action on Belarus’s human rights abuses at a Warsaw summit
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29 Sep 11 | Uncategorized
Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg will take to the airwaves in Belarus this afternoon, the home of Europe’s last dictatorship.
In an address to the people of Belarus, Clegg will vow to stand up to the tyranny on our doorstep. In an article for the Independent today, he commented:
“Belarus is trapped in the past: Europe’s shameful secret, right on our doorstep. So I’m determined we speak out and up the pressure on the regime. When popular uprisings exploded across North Africa and the Middle East, the UK took a stand and took it quickly. We will show the same leadership for Belarus.”
He described Belarus:
“Imagine a country where torture and intimidation are reportedly common place. Where peaceful protesters are locked up –– sent to maximum security prison colonies— and free-thinking journalists are harassed. Where a president can rig election-after-election, despite running the economy into the ground. Where most people are too scared to speak out and the death penalty remains.
After his speech in Warsaw, in which he is expected to praise the work of the Free Belarus Now campaign (supported by Index on Censorship) the Liberal Democrat leader will take part in an interview with European Radio for Belarus.
