MPs conclusion: PCC comfortable on the veranda of an accommodating hostelry

The House of Commons Select Committee on Culture, Media and Sport has published the report on its inquiry into self-regulation of the Press. Among the conclusions in its summary were, first, that "to dispense with the current form of self-regulation and to rely exclusively on the law would afford less protection rather than more", and that "any move towards a statutory regulator for the press would represent a very dangerous interference with the freedom of the press". While the former notion seems obvious, the underpinning of the latter escapes me.

The report did note, however, that "if the industry is not prepared to act unless a breach of the law is already shown to have occurred, then the whole justification for self-regulation is seriously undermined". In short, editors should pull their fingers out.

The Committee hasn't closed the book on the issue. It promised that the area "raises serious and complex issues which may merit abroader investigation than we have been able to undertake here... particularly in the light of the recent speech by Tony Blair about the behaviour of the press and the regulatory framework for the industry... [the subject] deserves careful examination in the future".

More on this anon...