As reported by the Newspaper Society: The new Coroners (Inquest) Rules 2013, which came into effect on 25 July, provide that the date, time and place of an inquest hearing should be made public prior to its commencement and that inquests should generally be opened in public.
Access to inquest documentation is covered by the new rules. Campaigners and campaign coverage will also benefit from the Coroners (Investigation) Rules further provision on the publication of reports on prevention of death and responses to them.
Over the decade since the launch of the reforms, the NS and regional editors have maintained their opposition to threats of increased inquest secrecy and tighter controls over press access and reporting, with a succession of submissions and meetings with appropriate ministers and officials, as well as a meeting with the Chief Coroner.
If any regional titles experience problems of inquest secrecy, please let the NS know as we will continue to monitor and make any necessary representations in this area. We can also directly advise any titles of NS members who subscribe to the PERA editorial legal advice service. The statutory instruments that enable the reforms are available here, including the new Rules.
