Lords to quiz the Sun on investigative journalism

The Sun’s Managing Editor, Richard Caseby, will give evidence to the House of Lords Communications Committee about investigative journalism tomorrow as the Committee continues its inquiry into the future of the industry.

Mr Caseby will be asked to draw on his experience from working at The Sun and The Sunday Times when the Committee question him on subjects including watchdog journalism in tabloid newspapers, the role of public relations in the generation of news stories and how digital developments have impacted the nature of investigative reporting.

The meeting will take place at 4.30pm on Tuesday 13 December in Committee Room 2 of the House of Lords and will be webcast live at www.parliamentlive.tv.

Lords committee continues its probe into investigative journalism

The House of Lords Communications Committee continues its inquiry into the future of investigative journalism tomorrow when it probes further into issues such as what can be defined as “public interest” and the role of the tabloid press in holding those in power to account.

In the first session,to be held at 3.30, the Committee will focus on the role that the PR industry plays in investigative journalism, techniques used by investigative journalists and how the way that publications instigate or pay for investigative stories may change in the future.

They will hear from Andrew Gilligan, London Editor of the Daily Telegraph and · Phil Hall, former Editor of News of the World

Immediately following, at 4.30, Thompson Reuters will give evidence via video-link from New York. Questions will range from the role of news agencies in investigative journalism to the Insight team of the Sunday Times, where Sir Harold was once Editor.

The witnesses are Sir Harold Evans, Editor at Large of Thomson Reuters, former Editor of the Sunday Times and the Times and Stephen Adler, Editor in Chief of Thomson Reuters

Lords to explore investigative journalism

The House of Lords will be discussing the future of investigative journalism tomorrow.

Its Communications Committee will question experts from universities and journalistic institutes about the importance of newspapers, the role of journalists and the concept of investigative journalism.





Those being brought to the house are Iain Overton, Managing Editor of the Bureau for Investigative Journalism,Dominic Cooper, General Secretary of the Chartered Institute for Journalists and Martin Moore, Director of the Media Standards Trust.

The session will focus on issues including the role of local newspapers within the field of investigative journalism, the financial pressures that newspapers face and how social media has changed the process of investigative journalism.

This scandal is a version of the dying days of Major

Many people are comparing the scandal in the Lords to the dying days of the last Tory government which was covered in political sleaze and scandal.

Writing in the Guardian this morning George Monbiot agrees saying that

the circle is closed. The government that won a landslide in 1997 after
Tory MPs were revealed to have taken cash for parliamentary questions now faces
far graver allegations: cash for laws. Along the way, almost every policy that
distinguished it from John Major's corrupt and pointless regime has been
abandoned

And if the Sun captures the public mood then look no further than Fergus Shanahan who writes that

Why should we be surprised that Labour lords are renting themselves out like tarts on a street corner?
Decent behaviour at Westminster has been replaced by the morality of the brothel. Never mind arresting innocent Tories, shouldn’t Scotland Yard investigate Labour corruption?

Scandal-Labour lords taking money for favours

It is rather nice to wake up to a bit of political scandal and this morning's Sunday Times returns to the old fashioned skill of undercover reporting.

Journalists from the paper,cunningly disguised as lobbyists have revealed that certain Labour peers have been willing to take cash in return for amending laws on behalf of business clients.

The peers have been named as Lord's Truscott,Taylor,Moonie and Snape.

I would imagine that Labour boffins waking up to this news need this story like a hole in the head

Lords reform moving slowly forwards

This morning's FT carries a report on the progress of the reform of the Upper House.

This seems to have fallen off the political agenda since earlier last year when Jack Straw

outlined details of a White Paper which proposes a House where some peers are elected and some still appointed, as they all are now.
The Lords could be renamed - with "the reformed chamber" an interim title.

The proposals at that stage allowed for 540 members of which half would be elected,the other half appointed

Elected the lords marked 96th anniversary of the Parliament Act 1911 with a statement that

Wouldn't it be outrageous if it took Parliament more than 100 years to fulfill its commitment to replace the House of Lords with something democratic?

And wanted to commit a deadline for the reforms to be in May 2011.

The FT today reports

Jack Straw, justice minister, is leading intensive cross-party talks on the future of the second chamber. The talks are now reaching consensus and a committee hopes to publish proposals before the summer recess.

If they are correct,the 540 members has now fallen to 400,to be called senators.

It is agreed that the "senate" will be either 80 or 100 per cent elected.Batches of three or four senators would each represent 80 to 100 "multi-member" constituencies. Existing life peers would be gradually replaced as the senators are elected in stages every four or five years.

So hang on until 2011