Michael McDowell has published the long-awaited Defamation Bill which will lay down substantial changes to the way the press in Ireland works.
The text of the bill is so far unavailable online but according to RTÉ it lays down the foundations for a press council, scraps the tort of libel and slander in favour of the single tort of defamation, allows for the defence of ‘fair and reasonable’ publication and puts a 1 year limit on the bringing of defamation cases amongst other things.
Following the disgraceful reporting on the death of Liam Lawlor calls for a Press Council have been growing however the ease at which such a council will be established remains to be seen; many news outlets are demanding the right to self-regulation and besides this it is unclear if any press council would be optional or mandatory. The issue of powers and governance would also have to be addressed.
The defence of ‘fair and reasonable’ publication is a welcome one although it will be interesting to see how it pans out in the real world; there must be a careful balance struck between allowing the media to say what it likes and allowing those in the wrong to get away with what they do.
The Privacy Bill is also long-awaited and seems like a rational exercise overall.
The tactics of the Minister have been interesting, it is widely felt that these two bills have been a delicate balancing act to gain press support. Obviously the print media need to be in agreement on a Press Council and it would be something for McDowell to hang his hat on in next years election; if this speech is anything to go by the carrot of “Fair and Reasonable Publication” can only be snatched at by outlets registered with or adhereing to the standards of said Press Council:
Subscription to the press council and adherence to its code of standards by a publication should, in my view, strengthen the entitlement to avail in any court action, of a proposed new defence of fair and reasonable publication, which I intend to provide for in the new Defamation Bill
…
Non-members of the press council, for whatever reason, wishing to avail of the new defence of fair and reasonable publication, would be required to have in place an equivalent fairness regime or to operate an equivalent and publicised code of standards.
There is no mention at present if the bill makes specific references to the internet or blogging; more on that once the text is widely available.
Update: More information available on the respective bills here and here.