PARLIAMENTARY EARLY DAY MOTION
HONOURABLE MEMBER FOR COLNE VALLEY AND THE SUNDAY TIMES (27 March 1996)

That this House congratulates the honourable Member for Colne Valley on his success with his complaint to the Press Complaints Commission against the Sunday Times; notes that the Press Complaints Commission found that there was no justification for the Sunday Times use of subterfuge, that the newspaper should have made clear to its readers that its approach to the honourable Member for Colne Valley had been on the basis of an entirely legitimate consultancy, not on the basis of a one-off payment in return for asking a question, that the approach to Conservative honourable Members was entirely different to the approach made to Labour honourable Members, and that the Sunday Times failed to tell its readers the truth about the honourable Member for Colne Valley's return of a cheque and the issue of who raised the subject of payments first; is amazed that the response of the editor of the Sunday Times, Mr John Witherow, a member of the Press Complaints Commission, was to say that his newspaper had only been criticised on a couple of minor points; believes that if self-regulation is to mean anything editors should accept the adjudications of the Press Complaints Commission; and questions whether Mr Rupert Murdoch is as dismissive of the Press Complaints Commission as his editor.

Sponsored by:
Mr John Townend (Conservative)