Calls for a judge-led public inquiry into the actions of the Police Service in Northern Ireland (PSNI) and Durham Constabulary, arising from the evidence given and material presented at the Investigatory Powers Tribunal (IPT), were supported by the National Union of Journalists (NUJ) at its delegate meeting held last weekend in Blackpool.
With increasing concerns about the extent of monitoring revealed at the Tribunal (the PSNI has already been forced to admit it spied on 300 journalists and 500 lawyers in Northern Ireland), it was crucial that the inquiry should have full statutory powers to compel witnesses to attend and to have documents revealed. Those targeted included more than a dozen journalists working for the BBC.
Journalists demand greater powers of sanction for the IPT
The union was also concerned about the recent ruling from the IPT, which found it has no legal authority to sanction public bodies for deliberately withholding or delaying disclosure of key evidence. It showed that there were no consequences for the illegal spying on journalists, as the IPT had no power to make awards for costs put forward by counsel for No Stone Unturned journalists Trevor Birney and Barry McCaffrey.
NUJ delegates called on the union to campaign for urgent reform of the law to allow the IPT to award costs against statutory bodies that have wilfully withheld information and/or persistently breached tribunal orders.
Calls for a public inquiry into police surveillance of journalists
Meanwhile the McCullough Review, an independent inquiry into PSNI surveillance of journalists, lawyers, non-governmental organisations and police oversight bodies, led by London lawyer Angus McCullough KC, is still considering evidence submitted to it last year. The review was commissioned by PSNI Chief Constable Jon Boutcher after campaigners raised concerns following evidence disclosed at the IPT pointed to potential widespread use of covert surveillance powers by the police. Its terms of reference are available here.
Last December, David Davis, MP for Goole and Pocklington, called for a public inquiry following a court ruling that the PSNI and Metropolitan Police unlawfully placed journalists under electronic surveillance.
