The letter from Bob Satchwell:
Dear Prime Minister,
The Society of Editors is extremely concerned about the use of the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act to check on journalists’ phone records. This rides roughshod over protections for journalists’ sources in other legislation and protocols that are frequently upheld by the courts – and indeed endorsed by politicians.
When RIPA was enacted we were told it was intended to help fight terrorism and, understandably, major crime, such as drugs and people trafficking, organised and economic crime.
Clearly the use of RIPA in this way has implications that extend far wider than the vital role of journalism in society, to the public generally and indeed for Parliament that enacted the legislation.
At a time when Ministers point to a reduction in crime, the latest figures which reveal a widespread use of this powerful but supposedly restricted weapon to access phone records mean that either politicians are being misled or the police are applying an extremely loose interpretation of “major crime” or indeed national security.
The Metropolitan Police is reported to have used RIPA 95,000 times in a year to access phone records. It also seems surprising that police in rural Norfolk and Suffolk should have used RIPA 4,000 times over two years.
According to Press Gazette more than 25 police forces have refused to provide details under the Freedom of Information Act, some saying it would cost too much to find the information. Others have used the excuse of protecting “national security” or the need to protect their tactics from criminals. In the two matters which have made headlines, the so-called “Plebgate” affair and the Huhne speeding points case, journalists were targeted without any apparent suggestion of criminality on their part or that national security was involved. There appears to be no any evidence of attention by the police to the sanctity of journalists’ sources, nor for the role of whistle-blowers who are also supposed to be protected by the law.
Inquiries by the Interception of Communications Commissioner and the Home Affairs Select Committee are clearly much-needed and welcome. The public, as well as the media, want to be reassured that the police are only using RIPA in the way Parliament intended, and certainly not to undermine or attack genuine journalistic inquiries into matters of public interest.
Regardless of the outcome of the inquiries the Society of Editors would like to know how the Government intends to ensure that important protections for journalists and whistle-blowers can be reinforced.
I look forward to hearing from you.
Yours Sincerely,
Bob Satchwell
Executive Director
