Paul Dacre Defends Self Regulation of the Press

Paul Dacre, editor in chief of the Daily Mail, issued an impassioned defence of self regulation of the press at a Leveson inquiry seminar on press standards yesterday (Wednesday).

The inquiry heard from a number of senior figures from the industry including Mr Dacre, Trinity Mirror chief executive Sly Bailey, Alan Rusbridger, editor-in-chief of the Guardian, and Lord Black, chairman of PressBof.

In his speech, Mr Dacre outlined his views on reform of the PCC which included starting a debate on the appointment of an Ombudsman for the newspaper industry to work in tandem with the PCC.

Mr Dacre condemned phone hacking but said that it didn’t mean that self regulation of the press had failed as a system, and that it is the only way for a “country that regards itself as truly democratic” to police “a genuinely free press”.

He said: “My greatest concern, however, – and it's a very real one – is that any future reforms must take into consideration the needs and commercial realities of all newspapers, the provincial press, mass-selling red tops, as well as loss-making broadsheets.”

Speaking about reform of the PCC, he said: “Firstly, it is vital that the good work of the PCC, helping vulnerable people obtain protection and redress, without compromising freedom of expression, is not lost. Any reformed system of self-regulation will have to cover the current work of the PCC: dealing with complaints against the whole of the press and producing swift results, offering pre-publication advice to complainants; preventing possible harassment by journalists and broadcasters; giving guidance to editors to help with ethical dilemmas; training journalists; and using a body of case law that has set standards and understanding. It will have to do so without governmental interference.

“It will have to do so with the collaboration of the industry. It will have to do so in an online environment. It will have to do so efficiently in cost terms. Which is why I believe it would be disastrous for a commission to impose fines. If that were to happen, lawyers would inevitably be used by newspapers resulting in the end of quick and free PCC justice.

“Secondly, while I abhor statutory controls, there's one area where Parliament can help the press. Some way must be found to compel all newspaper owners to fund and participate in self-regulation.”

He added: “I believe the time has come to debate the need for some kind of Newspaper Industry Ombudsman – possibly sitting in tandem with the commission – to deal specifically with press standards."

He said the Ombudsman could be a retired judge or civil servant advised by two retired editors “from both ends of newspaper spectrum" with "the power to investigate, potential press industry scandals” and operating in tandem with the PCC.

At the session, Sly Bailey provided details Trinity Mirror’s system of corporate governance and internal editorial controls and procedures. "You may think that this is little more than signing pieces of paper. In practice, it absolutely influences the way in which executives run and manage the business and is another tool that helps maintain standards."

She said that the company's recent review of editorial controls and procedures found that its internal controls were "robust". Some areas would be strengthened as a result of the review across Trinity's 165 newspapers and 500 websites. "These include training, legal oversight, expectations of third party suppliers and digital controls," she added.

“Proper processes lead to proper behaviour and need not limit creativity,” she concluded.