17 May 2012

Leveson Inquiry - Module 3 - Day 7 - Oborne and Evans

Thursday, 17th May 2012

Today's Witnesses:
Peter Oborne
Sir Harold Evans


Module 3 - Key Questions to be addressed in this Module

Useful Links:
Leveson Inquiry Witness Statements HERE 
Leveson Inquiry Witness Lists HERE 
Video Recordings of each day's proceedings HERE
Live Feed From Leveson Inquiry Site HERE
BBC Democracy Live Feed HERE 
Guardian Live Blog HERE
Telegraph Live Blog HERE  
Yesterday's Hearing HERE
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Links to latest articles, comment and information relevant to the Leveson Inquiry: 
@JoshHalliday - Twitter - 5:53 p.m. :-
NEW: Special adviser to ex-home sec Charles Clarke suing NotW and Glenn Mulcaire over phone hacking. More soon..
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Peter Oborne - #1 Witness Statement
Guardian Live Blog HERE 

Peter Oborne being sworn in 10:03 a.m.
Mr Barr begins his questioning
@IndexLeveson:
Oborne is chief political commentator of the Daily Telegraph & author. Barr quoting Oborne's book, The Rise of Political Lying, now
@lisaocarroll:
Oborne, a critic of Alastair Campbell accompanied today be barrister Gavin Millar, QC for Telegraph and campbell's bro in law
@nataliepeck:
Oborne: The media can indeed distort public discourse.
 
@rosschawkins:
Oborne: Michael Howard in 05 said he might stay on after gen elex if he lost & party wanted him, Mail hline: "Dracula stakes himself"
@nataliepeck:
Oborne: Would have been preferable if [Michael] Howard had found a form of words left open to possibilities.
New Labour saw truth as something which served the purposes of government
@nataliepeck:
Oborne: When new Labour emerged in power (1997), truth seen as something which served the purposes of government.
@IndexLeveson:
Oborne: purpose of free press is to inform, entertain, allow public to make judgment of government and issues of the day
Oborne says Baroness Onora O'Neill's definition of press freedom "has the air of Newnham College, Cambridge about it"

@nataliepeck:
Oborne: Sometimes you get a feeling Onora O'Neill doesn't much like the press.  

@rosschawkins:
Oborne: if newspapers were written in manner of an article in a philosophical journal nobody would read them 
@IndexLeveson:
Oborne: post-Iraq and Afghanistan, too many British newspapers were silent on issue of Britain's complicity in torture
@nataliepeck:
Oborne: Silence about phone hacking on behalf of a number of British newspapers was culpable.
Oborne: Nick Davies "industrially weaved away" on phone hacking story.

@rosschawkins:
Oborne: there was pretty well an omerta in Fleet St surrounding the phone hacking evidence, but Guardian got to truth
Oborne: Robert Maxwell was quite clearly a crook and only Wall St Journal started hinting at it towards end  
Judge praises Private Eye: #leveson - Private Eye has been publishing during this Inquiry what papers don't publish

@nataliepeck:
Oborne: Reluctance by other papers to report hacking because titles didn't want to embarass each other.
@lisaocarroll:
Oborne: newspapers don't have a go at one another - that is one of the most abominable characteristics of Fleet St
Oborne: British newspapers silence on complicity of UK in rendition profoundly unethical. There was an omertà

@nataliepeck:
Oborne: MPs' expenses scandal was a systematic negligence by the press over a huge period of time.
Oborne: When one Tory MP stood down because of "monstrous" expenses claim there was no coverage of it.

@rosschawkins:
Oborne cites earlier MP expenses revelations of which press & politicians made nothing
 
@IndexLeveson:
Oborne: this scandal had been going on for 20 years. Adds that parliamentary lobby became too close to MPs 
Oborne: sheer scale of it unbelievable, evidence bubbling to surface for long time before publication. Political journos ignored it  

@lisaocarroll:
Oborne: there was systematic negligence by papers in relation to MPs expenses scandal. Took 20 years to come out 
@nataliepeck:
Oborne: The Sun was incredibly bullish about the British presence in Afghanistan. Vicious attack on Brown deeply unfair.
@rosschawkins:
Oborne: Sun's treatment of Gordon Brown letter of condolence was "shameful & wretched business" 
@IndexLeveson:
Oborne laments lack of coverage of human rights abuses in Afghanistan, but praises Guardian's Ian Cobain's coverage of torture
Oborne: press used to stand when Harold Wilson walked into room, that deference replaced by familiarity

@nataliepeck:
Oborne: Major iss on Britain's presence in Afghanistan still massively underreported. Haven't read single thing on HR abuses, etc.
Oborne: The deference [shown to politicians] was steadily replaced by familiarity. Something to be said for it as brought distance.
Oborne: NI annual party at Tory/Labour party conferences was a very important statement about how Britain ws being governed.  

@rosschawkins:
Oborne at #leveson: News International summer party was a power event; unfortunately I never got in
@IndexLeveson:
Oborne: political reporting had become set of private deals, private arrangements, invisible to voters
Oborne: white papers not covered in same serious way they used to be.

@nataliepeck:
Oborne: Political reporting had become a matter of private deals, invisible to voters. 
#Leveson: That puts it very high: conspiracy against the readers. Oborne: That's exactly what was going on.

@lisaocarroll:
Oborne: news int seated behind cabinet at party conferences. Brought into inner sanctum. Democracy becoming a private conversation
Oborne: democracy becoming a private conversation between elite groups such as news international 
Oborne: political reporting had become a matter of private deals invisible to voters between media and politicians
  
@IndexLeveson:
Oborne: if you didn't get close to those who ran New Labour [for info] (...) those who tried to report objectively were frozen out
Oborne: duty of journo is to get a story, how better than to become friend of person who can supply info? But not a desirable thing
Oborne: one of malign phenomena about British public life is the knowingness of our leading political figures
Oborne: Chancellor sophisticated b/c he knows rules of political game but unfamiliar with life as it's lived out there

@nataliepeck:
Oborne: People who tried to report objectively + fairly were frozen out, bullied, victimised, not given any access to information. 
Oborne: Press + politicians became elite category who you could observe manufacturing a particular kind of acceptable public truth.
Oborne: Mingling with the press at an early stage creates an ambience which defines politicians in a particular way.
Oborne: I do think vulnerable minorities are pursued by some newspapers in an invidious way. 

@rosschawkins:
Oborne: Miliband, Balls, Osborne, Cameron - mingle as SpAds v early with press, creates social structure and ambience which defines people 
@nataliepeck:
Oborne state: During Blair + early Cameron admins, Murdoch personnel were incorporated as part of government machine + visa versa.
Oborne state: There is some reason to believe the Murdoch connection with government contributed to general NI sense of impunity
Oborne state: Damaging headlines alone can never force a minister out. There is always in my experience a more substantive reason.

@arusbridger:
Oborne criticises Polly Toynbee for writing '08 piece for villifying Islam generally for acts of a few people 
Oborne claims Polly told him she wdn't hv written same piece today. But. he says, piece is still on G website
#Leveson probes issues of web-based archives when newspapers no longer fish & chip wrapping -"a permanence never envisaged"

This is Polly Toynbee piece which Oborne has criticsed. #leveson 2001, not 2008

@IndexLeveson:
Oborne: there's no journo in the land who wouldn't welcome this extra scrutiny. #leveson says most journos doing job honourably
#Leveson to Oborne: am keen to make it clear that bulk of work done doesn't fall within category of work you've been criticising
Oborne: I'm criticising work that is complicit, where journo loses his editorial independence.

@rosschawkins:
#Leveson: almost every reporter in the land is indeed decent; majority of journalism is people Oborne describes this as a very generous statementdoing job honestly / honourably
Oborne: not sure regional papers for all their blissful parish magazine quality play a serious role in addressing scandals
Oborne being asked about this article

@nataliepeck:
Oborne state: Exposure + part collapse of Murdoch empire may have opened way to new decency in British journalism + public life.
Oborne: One problem of regional reporting is the issues of local corruption.
Oborne: Quote on Cameron/Murdoch meeting from NI senior figure is accurate. Was said to me over lunch by extremely relevant figure.
Oborne: I think that there was a sense that somehow NI was above the law.
Oborne: As I understand it, Tessa Jowell was told her phone was hacked in 2006 and took no action. 
Oborne: Seems to have been lack of interest at cabinet level in allegedly illegal activities of NI - sense of poiltical protection.

@lisaocarroll:
Oborne: not too harsh to say NI felt impunity, cabinet ministers such as Tessa Jowell did nothing when told she was hacked. Why?
@nataliepeck:
Oborne: Don't think a PM should be an intermediary for a company for a commercial concern (on Prodi/Blair conversation on Murdoch). 
@rosschawkins:
Oborne: if a PM is so pathetic and weak he sacks ministers because of headlines he doesn't deserve to be PM
@nataliepeck:
Oborne: There has been a myth created by politicians attributing enormous power to the media which it doesn’t actually possess. 
@lisaocarroll:
Oborne: politicians created myth that media have power to sack them. Mandelson resigned cos he did wrong not because of media
@nataliepeck:
Oborne:Should have been ministerial investigation at cabinet secretary level on "recent example" of potentially improper behaviour.

@rosschawkins:
Qt from Oborne ws: meetings between journalists and politicians should be viewed as a potential conspiracy against the public
Peter Oborne speaking about lobby journalists and their relationship with politicians
@nataliepeck:
Oborne: I'm quite sympathetic to register of connections. There is failure to report white papers, green papers, hustings, debates.

Guardian Live Blog:
Barr says Oborne, in his witness statement, says the "social apartheid" that used to exist between journalists and politicians should be restored. But, asks Barr, does this risk throwing the baby out with the bathwater?
"Something's gone wrong with the way politics is reported," says Oborne. "If you go to the House of Commons chamber, it is quite often empty. Brilliant speeches are made an unreported but some sort of furtive lunch may end up as a bitchy piece by a colleague."
Oborne says he is "quite sympathetic" with the idea that there should be a register of "connections" between journalists and MPs. He says important debates, white papers and the such go unreported.
"Reporting of British politics has become too 'inside', too much of a conspiracy," he says.
Barr says newspapers don't have the resources to cover parliamentary affairs in the way Oborne would like.
@lisaocarroll:
Oborne: a politician may hv v little talent but a very effective press machine and b represented to world at as extraordinary man
@rosshawkins:
Oborne: George Osborne should have resigned over Budget leaks


Guardian Live Blog:
Now discussing leaking of information to newspapers.
Oborne says "virtually all of the budget was leaked presumably by the government to the newspapers. The speaker of the House of Commons is in a position to come down like a ton of bricks on them. It's a breach of House of Commons rules, George Osborne should have resigned, but there was no criticism, or very little.
He says parliament has an opportunity to "reassert its traditional function as the main source of news about executive decision-making".
LJ Leveson asking Oborne about 'in the public interest' defence
@nataliepeck:
Oborne agrees newspapers need to be extremely careful where criminal law is concerned but defends justified when public interest.
Oborne: Clearly what happened at NI was it became part of culture that [hacking] was something you did without thinking about it.

@rosschawkins:
Long discussion about this frm Oborne ws: papers can arguably be justified in carrying out criminal acts fr investigation in public interest
The NUJ 'Conscience Clause' is being discussed in connection with journalistic freedom to write what they please
From Guardian Live Blog:
Oborne says of tabloid newsdesks: "Of course they are going to be aggressive, of course they are going to seek advantage. Long may that last. There is a real spirit to it, you have got to be a certain type of person. I can very well understand if someone at the end of the day called in front of a leading judge, they may find they have behaved in a way that they may find regrettable. I do understand that. Any walk of life has some pretty, you know, stuff going on."
Leveson responds: "Of course they are going to try and scoop their rivals" but suggests it should not be a "no-holds-barred business". He says he understands people making mistakes "and sometimes they will get it wrong". But it doesn't alter the base to which people return. "The alternative is, actually it's all right to do whatever I like."
@nataliepeck:
Oborne: I would go as further to say there has been a collapse in standards.
Oborne: Astonishing events of last few years down to failure to enforce existing laws + internal collapse.
Oborne disagreeing with LJ Leveson's assertion that Met Police, at the time of Mulcaire's arrest/conviction, were too busy with terrorist activities to investigate press
@nataliepeck:
Oborne: Was a gross failure by Met to investigate clear evidence of criminal behaviour [but agrees journalist should observe law].

Guardian Live Blog:
Oborne says he "does not entirely agree ... it seems to me there was a gross failure by the Met police to investigate clear evidence of criminal behaviour".
Leveson says that's not the question: "Do you agree it's not appropriate for press to say it's primarily a question of law enforcement. Should we trust the press to enforce the law without a policeman standing by their shoulder to ensure they do?"
"Yes," says Oborne.
@rosschawkins:
Oborne: we have more scrupulous form of public discourse, less deception; credits other websites

@nataliepeck:
Barr mentions , . Oborne adds . Should checking be preserve of pressure groups or also regulator?
[For clarity, part of C4 so not in same boat as the others.
Oborne: There are certain demonstrably and provable lies and it would be healthy if there were a sanction.
Oborne passes on answering regulation questions, but asks about foreign ownership of the press.
Oborne: Too many papers owned by people whose true interests don't lie in this country,papers stop providing proper civic function.

Guardian Live Blog:
Oborne in his evidence says "political lying" should be a crime. "We would have to set a very high bar for political lying to be a crime. Politicians I have noticed freely do make entirely false statements about how they are conducting themselves and why you should vote for them."
He says clearly some licence had to be given but would be a welcome move, including for political journalists.
Barr suggests it would be very difficult to define such an offence. Oborne disagrees and says part of the problem is that there is no language in the House of Commons to call someone a liar. "They can't be challenged on the floor of the House of Commons because it is assumed they are honest man. It is a false assumption."
But what about the practical difficulties, asks Barr. Oborne admits he's "not an expert".
Leveson says it would be an "enormously chilling effect" to include political journalists.
Peter Oborne's testimony is complete.
 
Sir Harold Evans


Guardian Live Blog HERE


@rosschawkins:
Sir Harold Evans via videolink to the #leveson inquiry
(Evans can't hear, sound and pix not in sync, Evans now doing I'm-being-deafened gestures)
#leveson - your voice is not synchronised with your mouth
evans - I could get a plane this afternoon...
(I'd be lying if I said this wasn't faintly comic)
Sir Harold is sincerely offering to fly to London now

@BBCPeterHunt:
Leveson: an inquiry into media having trouble with video link to US with Sir Harold Evans. He's offering to fly to London instead. 
 @nataliepeck:
{This is great, can now hear and see SIr Harold discussing whether he should fly out with people his end. Inquiry working on link.

From Guardian Live Blog:
Sir Harold Evans appears briefly via video link, but is experiencing technical difficulties and has offered to catch a plane to London this afternoon.
Leveson wonders whether that might be necessary as the inquiry takes an unexpected break.
The hearing resumes: 14:20 p.m. :-
Sir Harold sees the humour in the technical difficulties!
@IndexLeveson:
Sir Harry: I am at ease at the moment, might diminish as we proceed
Sir Harry: I want to apologise for the trial of Nurembeurg apparatus
@rosschawkins:
Evans apologises for the "trial at Nuremberg apparatus" - he means his headphones
 
@nataliepeck:
Robert Jay QC is questioning. SIr Harold displays his bible as he is sworn in. 
Sir Harry adds a "so help me God" to the end of his oath.
Evans was editor of the ST 1967-81 and editor of Times 1981-2.

Mr Jay interviews Sir Harold Evans
@IndexLeveson:
Sir Harry: remarkable thing about S. Times is that ownership of paper absolutely insisted on political independence
Sir Harry says the paper was an "editor's dreamworld" of freedom

@nataliepeck
Evans: Investigations I instigated from 1961-81, approved two surreptitious wireless recordings - both to expose criminality. 
@lisaocarroll:
William Rees Mogg arranged for surreptitious recording to expose police corruption in 70s
 
@IndexLeveson:
Jay references Evans' statement, says his rule of thumb in deciding ethics was you must openly declare how you got info
@dansabbagh:
Harold Evans says he was surprised the Gdn editor Alastair Hetherington changed his papers line on Vietnam to help Harold Wilson...
@nataliepeck:
Evans: It serves neither the politicians or the press well for the relationship to get to be one of complicity. 
@IndexLeveson:
Sir Harry: you enter a Faustian bargain when journos get too intimate with politicians. Would never allow myself to do that
Sir Harry: I absolutely deplored the invasions of privacy creating a great deal of misery for no public interest whatseover
Sir Harry: in the 1970s almost every investigation ran against external restraint (official secrets, libel, contempt etc) 

@rosschawkins:
Evans: in 70s almost every investigation ran against external restraint - official secrets, libel, contempt, confidence
@arusbridger:
Evans talking abt 70s: UK had a "half free press" - OSA, libel, contempt, confidence etc.

@nataliepeck:
Evans: It wasn't even known Thatcher had a secret meeting with Murdoch, this had to be accepted although it was a falsehood.
Evans: Sir Denis Hamiliton one of the great pillars of British journalism. He thought Murdoch lowering standards of British press.

@rosshawkins:
Evans: Thatcher/Murdoch meeting wasn't known to cabinet; Murdoch told Times historian no such meeting took place, that was falsehood
@IndexLeveson:
Sir Harry: Sir Denis was vehement in his condemnation of Rupert Murdoch
 
@nataliepeck:
Evans: He changed tack, Denis revealed to me that Rupert had offered him the chairmanship of the new Times newspaper.
Evans: Rupert Murdoch came ahead in the ST journalists' chapel with 37 votes. We assumed that the bid would not go through.
Evans: One of the sadnesses of my life was when Denis Hamilton was sacked.

@dansabbagh:

Evans - Jan 20 1981 - Denis Hamilton minute noting that Murdoch was preferred Times bidder unless editors wanted Associated or Lonhro
Evans said Times hacks thought Murdoch bid would blocked by MMC regulator. Bid was approved without referral to MMC.

@IndexLeveson:
Sir Harry: one of the sadnesses of my life was...a few months after Sir Denis made chairman he was sacked.
Sir Harry says Denis gave him bound volumes of the history of the Times in tears. told him to "get them out of this place"
 Sir Harry says Denis was the "creative genius" of the paper. "I was just the lucky inheritor" 

@nataliepeck:
Evans: Murdoch decision made by board of Thomson, not by board of Times newspapers. 
 
@lisaocarroll:
Evans: sir denis Hamilton, The creative genius behind Sunday Times was sacked and humiliated by Murdoch when he bought the paper  
@rosschawkins:
Evans: of other bidders Murdoch was most suitable person to deal with v difficult trade unions
 
@nataliepeck:
Jan 1981 meeting: New proprietor should acknowledge the current and past realtionships between Editors, Managament and Proprietor. 
Evans: We did quite a bit of work investigating Murdoch's practice in Australia. Australian journalists on paper opposed him.

@IndexLeveson:
Sir Harry: We did quite a bit of work investigating Murdoch's operations in Australia. S. Times staff said he wasn't to be trusted 
@arusbridger:
Evans: we all thought Murdoch bid for Times wd go to Monopolies Commission. Didn't know of secret Thatcher lunch
@nataliepeck:
Evans: Murdoch gave the impression he would pull away completely and Thomson wanted him.
Evans: It was ridiculous to say you can't go to the Mono Cmtt for the most important newspaper takeover in British press history.

@IndexLeveson:
Sir Harry: this wasn't a sword of Damocles but a pistol pointed at the heads of everyone 
Sir Harry: ridiculous to say you can't go to the Monopolies Commission for most important newspaper takeover in Brit press history

@nataliepeck:
Evans: Murdoch had no role in how the accounts of the ST were presented to the Secretary of State. 
Horrified! The Murdoch purchase of Sunday Times went thro' on falsehoods...
@nataliepeck:
Evans: Everything I've been able to check out in Woodrow Wyatt's diaries has turned out to be accurate. I wasn't fond of him.
@lisaocarroll:
Evans: woodrow Wyatt diaries show in 1987 how Tories said 'we need another pro Margaret newspaper'
@nataliepeck:
Evans: Horrified that Biffen gave consent immediately, we knew that he couldn't have given it a minute's scrutiny.
@arusbridger:
Evans: I din't particularly like Woodrow Wyatt but I found his journals remarkably accurate on things I knew about
@rosschawkins:
#leveson asks how this 30 year old history helps him address his terms of reference
 
@nataliepeck
Evans: I was told by someone I knew that Thatcher had determined it must go to Murdoch because she valued his support.
Evans: The seminal event was 30 years ago - all flowed from the excessive concentration of power in a single media corporation.
@dansabbagh:
Leveson asks how facts of 1981 Times takeover are relevant to his inquiry. Evans said this was "the seminal event". Gave Murdoch his power.
Evans - "What happened in 1981 was a manifestation of too close a connection between a powerful media group and politicians"

@rosschawkins:
Evans says there's a clear connection between events of 1981 & what's happening now

@nataliepeck:
Evans: What happened in 1981 is relevant, was manifestation of too close a connection between powerful media group and politicians.
rosshawkins:
Evans: in first six months Mr Murdoch was just the sort of owner one wd like, involved, not bullying
Evans says Murdoch urged him to attack Royal family in Times over civil list, Murdoch's argument based on faulty figures
 
@arusbridger:
"Everyone fell over because they're terrified of him"-Evans on how Murdoch got his way w governments over t years 
@nataliepeck:
Evans: In my first six months at the Times Murdoch was an electric presence, vivid and amusing, direct and fast in his decisions. 
@IndexLeveson:
Evans says 1981 a v bad time in Britain, Thatcher wildly unpopular, econ policies not working. 
Evans adds this lead 2 great deal of anxiety on Murdoch’s part.After Sept/Oct skies looked darker & darker 'til thunderclouds burst
Sir Harry: I had a gradual distancing from Murdoch because I wouldn't support what gov't said come what may

@nataliepeck:
Evans: Murdoch came home to meet my wife, by dinner it was almost fisticuffs.
 
@nataliepeck:
Evans - invited Murdoch to dinner at his home; by the time they got there it was almost fisticuffs re an economics piece 
(Murdoch told #leveson Evans asked him "tell me what you want to say... I will do it"; Evans dismisses this)
Evans published two page spread on Poland; Murdoch turned to Sun, pointed and said - that's all you need on Poland
@dansabbagh:
Evans remembers many examples of Murdoch directing editorial eg telling a leader writer to "attack the Russians more".
@nataliepeck:
Evans: Dinner with Murdoch + pals, criticised me. Next day he send for me + had the paper open, biro gouging through business news.
@IndexLeveson:
Sir Harry re-enacting Murdoch banging on the table yelling "sport! Where's the sport?!"
 
@nataliepeck:
Evans: Wasn't about general economy or economy of Times Newspapers. It was imposing editorial will + destroying ed guarantees. 
@arusbridger:
Evans: Murdoch broke every one of 5 guarantees [to parliament] over Times


Guardian Live Blog:
Evans says the final straw for him and journalists was when Murdoch increased the number of redundancies needed at the Times without telling him.
He says Murdoch had broken all five of his promises to parliament about the Times takeover.
Evans adds that he wrote a letter of protest about the situation.
@lisaocarroll:
Evans: Murdoch's description of me as a Uriah Heep who had no opinion is funniest thing I've heard in 100 years
@rosschawkins:
Jay quotes Evans on Murdoch: "evil incarnate, he's had his heart removed long ago along with all his moral faculties"
Sir Harold Evans animatedly explaining why he resigned as editor.
@dansabbagh:
Evans said Murdoch called him a communist, a supporter of the SDP, said he had overspent a budget that he hadn't been given.
@arusbridger:
Evans: "I became disgusted, dismayed and demoralised by vindictive & punitive atmosphere" at Times in 82 
@nataliepeck:
Evans: I thought Calcutt on privacy was extremely good. The opportunity to follow on with law was lost. 
@IndexLeveson:
Sir Harry: Mr Dacre serves a compliment from me in bravery of challenging Lawrence killing 
Sir Harry: Brit journalism superior to US journalism in its style, writing. US better in terms of accuracy & freedom of expression
Sir Harry: have a situation where papers are hiring private detectives. We used to hire reporters
Sir Harry highlights excesses of Brit press, persecution of individuals for "no public good whatsoever"
Sir Harry: Dangerous to bring a statute to bear on these matters
Sir Harry: best answer is to have an ombudsman, man of journalistic distinction as chairman w/ legal advice who has power to punish
Sir Harry says experienced ombudsman could hold press to very highest standards, rather than bringing in statute

@JoshHalliday:
Harry Evans: “We’ve now got to a situation where newspapers are hiring private detectives - we used to hire reporters!”
@nataliepeck:
Evans: I think superinjunctions are an appalling abuse of power.

@lisaocarroll:
Evans; PCC had no investigative powers not even the power to frighten a goose
 
@IndexLeveson:
Sir Harry: Guardian being rebuked for doing an investigative piece was a disgrace. Were doing a major public service 
@arusbridger:
#Leveson: "I totally, completely agree" no govt controls on press. But ombudsman, etc, can't be done consensually
@nataliepeck:
Evans on future regulation: We need some extra authority to clean up the mess that we're in. 

@dansabbagh:
Evans says he increased Times sales, despite what Murdoch said. When Times refused to correct it "lost its sense of moral responsibility".

Sir Harold Evans' evidence completed.

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