Leveson stays silent on Press regulation

LORD Justice Leveson was on a collision course with MPs last night after refusing to give his opinions on plans for Press regulation.

The judge who ran the inquiry into Press standards refused to discuss the continuing controversy over regulation yesterday when he appeared before a House of Lords committee.

MPs on the Culture Select Committee, who are quizzing Lord Justice Leveson today, warned that he would get a ‘hard time’ if he refuses to answer questions about the proposals.

One warned that he would deliver a ‘kick in the teeth’ to Parliament and look like ‘a berk’ if he refuses to co-operate.

Culture Secretary Maria Miller, Labour’s deputy leader Harriet Harman and Li beral Democrat Lord Wallace yesterday continued talks over how to set up a new system of Press regulation underpinned by Royal Charter.

One plan, drawn up by the newspaper and magazine industry, was rejected by the Privy Council on Tuesday but Press chiefs warn that the alternative, written by politicians and the Hacked Off lobby group, represents a grave threat to Britain’s 300-year tradition of a free Press.

Giving evidence to a Lords committee on public inquiries, Lord Justice Leveson made clear he has no intention of being sucked into politics, saying: ‘I am a serving judge. It would be absolutely inappropriate for me to come back into the question of my report or regulation of the Press.’

Culture committee chairman John Whittingdale said he will not let the judge duck his questions. ‘It is a farce if you can sit for that amount of time in an inquiry, spend that kind of money and then say you are not prepared to say anything more about it in Parliament,’ he added.

Tory MP Philip Davies told the Mail: ‘He can sit there and say nothing if he’s prepared to look like a complete berk but I wouldn’t have thought that was in his best interests.’

MPs could even hold Lord Justice Leveson in contempt, added Mr Davies.

Mrs Miller yesterday sought to get Labour and Lib Dem approval to address concerns from the newspaper industry about the Royal Charter plan so that it can be agreed tomorrow. But there was no breakthrough yesterday.

Tory MP Douglas Carswell said: ‘ The Government looks like it is about to subject what newspapers write to a regulatory body. I grew up in Idi Amin’s Uganda – and this is the sort of thing they did there.’