Reduce influence of editors on press watchdog, says chief

The new chairman of the Press Complaints Commission has proposed a raft of measures aimed at restoring public confidence in the print media, including a reduction of journalists' influence in judging the actions of their peers.

Sir Christopher Meyer said an increase in the number of lay members of the commission would reduce the influence of journalists. He also proposed the appointment of an independent PCC charter commissioner to examine claims that the watchdog fails to follow correct procedures when dealing with complaints against the press.

The plan for a commissioner as a further "court of appeal" for complaints goes some way towards demands for a "press ombudsman". This was an idea proposed by Simon Kelner, editor-in-chief of The Independent and The Independent on Sunday, who argued in favour of an ombudsman to act as a backstop to the PCC, when he gave evidence at a hearing of the House of Commons Culture Select Committee in March.

The idea provoked a furious debate among newspaper editors, some of whom said that it would compromise the freedom of the press by ending industry self-regulation.

Sir Christopher's proposed charter commissioner would not be involved in the judging of the content of a complaint. But the PCC chairman's introduction of a series of measures to make self-regulation a more open process acknowledges the lack of public confidence in the press.

Sir Christopher, who took up his position as chairman of the press watchdog a month ago, said he would be creating an additional lay place on the commission, increasing the proportion of lay members to journalists to 10 to seven.

In a speech to the annual general meeting of the Newspaper Society in London, he said the new position on the commission ­ and all future appointments ­ would be advertised. Under the previous system, a PCC committee had responsibility for approving new members.

The introduction of a commissioner would be likely to be welcomed by high-profile critics who feel that the PCC's judgements favour editors.

In August 2001, the newsreader Anna Ford, who complained to the PCC after she was photographed using a tele-photo lens while sunbathing in a bikini on a public beach in Majorca, accused the Commission of being a "weak pussycat". The PCC threw her complaint out after deciding that she had no reasonable expectation of privacy on a public beach.

Ford then unsuccessfully tried to challenge the ruling in a landmark case in which she invoked the Human Rights Act in a High Court action. In 2001 she said in an interview with The Times: "At the moment the PCC seems inclined to believe editors in their intentions and not the feelings of people whose privacy has genuinely been invaded."

Last month, Sir Christopher, 59, who took over as PCC chairman from Lord Wakeham after being headhunted from the Foreign Office, where he was ambassador to Washington, confirmed that he is a supporter of self-regulation and opposes any new privacy law. After his appointment, he said: "The principle is absolutely fundamental. I think self-regulation does work, should work, and all the alternatives are inferior to it. I wouldn't have taken this job if I had any doubts about that."