Jeremy Hunt backs tougher Press control

THERE is public “consensus” the Press needs a tougher regulatory system independent of politicians, Culture Secretary Jeremy Hunt said yesterday.

Mr Hunt said newspapers must face “credible punishment” for stepping out of line, adding the government would look “very, very carefully” at the recommendations of the Leveson Inquiry into Press standards.

Any new regulatory body “must have the confidence of the public”, but the “elephant in the room” was technological advances which newspapers were struggling to adapt to, the minister added.

Mr Hunt said: “I think a consensus is emerging that there does need to be some structural changes in the way the Press is regulated.

“I think on the other side people are recognising what we value the Press for, so of course we don’t want phone hacking, we don’t want those practices.

“But I think people also recognise, for example, the News of the World exposed the cricket-fixing scandal, the Daily Mail played a very important role in bringing Stephen Lawrence’s murderers to justice so I think people are recognising what we value as well.”

Mr Hunt added: “I think everyone recognises we don’t want the state regulating content. We have one of the most lively presses in the world, they make life for me and my colleagues extremely uncomfortable and it is part of us keeping us on the straight and narrow.

“But on the other we need to have a tougher system.”