Missing Milly Dowler's voicemail "hacked by News of the World"

[Dan U]

I know, they are ploughing through it and not even heard about the McCann family yet.

or the 7/7 victims family who have been added to the court case

 

[London_Calling]

The level of payments seems about as relevant to the main issue as how much Cheryl Cole got from Hello! for her wedding photos.

The main issues remain to have some kind of safeguard put in place to make sure this all-emcompassing nonsense (police, CPS, politicians, media, blackmail, corruption, anti-democratic influence, etc, etc) can't happen again, and also for the PI to undermine the Murdoch clan so much the US shareholders thrown them overboard.

Should I care about who gets how much?

 

[Dan U]

They can afford to lose that amount (doubled tripled) without blinking, it's the easy access to influencing media legislation that's really going to hurt them. The ongoing profit making of sky etc basically.

definitely.

and they (NI) and the Police are moving to close this down now. The former with the cheque book, the latter with this Official Secrets nonsense - which has even had the Daily Mail and Richard Littlejohn defending the Guardian..

 

[WWWeed]

The Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) is issuing the following statement in relation to recent media coverage and comment about Operation Weeting, its inquiry into phone-hacking at the News of the World.

It has been reported that officers from Operation Weeting are in some way misusing the Official Secrets Act in relation to their inquiry. This is not true.

The application for a production order against the Guardian newspaper and one of its reporters is part of an inquiry by officers from the MPS Directorate of Professional Standards (DPS) Anti Corruption Unit, NOT Operation Weeting.

This application was made under the Police and Criminal Evidence Act (PACE), NOT the Official Secrets Act (OSA).

The OSA is only mentioned in the application in relation to possible offences that may have been committed in connection with the officer from Operation Weeting who was arrested on 18 August this year on suspicion of misconduct in a public office relating to unauthorised disclosure of information. He is currently on bail.

Operation Weeting is one of the MPS's most high profile and sensitive investigations so of course we should take concerns of leaks seriously to ensure that public interest is protected by ensuring there is no further potential compromise. The production order was sought in that context by the DPS which is conducting the investigation.

The MPS cannot respond to the significant public and political concern regarding leaks from the police to any part of the media if we aren't robust in our investigations and make all attempts to obtain best evidence of the leaks.

The MPS is on record in paying tribute to the Guardian's unwavering determination to expose the hacking scandal and their challenge around the initial police response. We also recognise the important public interest of whistle blowing and investigative reporting, however neither is apparent in this case.

 

[butchersapron]

Paddick briefs. Others leak

 

[claphamboy]

I don't really keep track of these things.

Just surprised that Max Mosley achieved a £60k settlement in March 2008, Max Clifford achieved a £1m settlement in March 2010 and the Dowler family are likely to accept a settlement of £2m in October 2011.

I think that the intrusion on the Dowler family is far more brutal than the intrusion on Max 'consenting adults' Mosley but still it is a massive upward trend.

I don't think you can compare the Mosley case with the others, as that had nothing to do with phone hacking - it was a privacy case over the headline "F1 boss has sick Nazi orgy with five hookers" and article under it.

He didn't exactly do well in that case because most of the report was true, he only got the £60k, because the court ruled that there was no evidence of a Nazi element to the sex act.

 

[London_Calling]

What is phone hacking if not a privacy issue?

 

[belboid]

A specific crime in law.

 

[claphamboy]

What is phone hacking if not a privacy issue?

Mosley didn't win on the privacy issue anyway, he was awarded £60K ONLY because the rag described him involved in a 'sick Nazi orgy with five hookers', whereas the court ruled that there wasn't a Nazi element to the 'sick orgy'.

Even if he had a major win based on privacy, it could still not be compared with the phone hacking situation as that goes way further than just buying the story from someone else involved, as in the Mosley case.

Also as belboid points out there's the criminal element to phone hacking, no crime was committed in the Mosley case.

 

[London_Calling]

I don't agree. Both cases are about privacy - or more specifically the ridiculous state of privacy law in the UK - even if they relied on different areas of law. It's a legal dogs breakfast, made worse by tabloid abuse.

 

[belboid]

disagree all you want. You are still completely and utterly wrong.

 

[claphamboy]

I don't agree.

You don't agree that some things are a crime and some things are not?

Weird.

 

[DaveCinzano]

Of interest:
Met's supergrass system called into question by dismissal of Gary Eaton

Amusing, given how deeply into the use of 'assisting offenders' the likes of subsequent Murdoch shill Andy Hayman was whilst at CIB.

 

[London_Calling]

You don't agree that some things are a crime and some things are not?

The point is they should both be criminal breaches of privacy and yet they are currently not. Or at least one might be and the other can be protected if you have £30,000 spare. QED (the law is a dogs breakfast).

 

[eoin_k]

Leaving the finer points of the UKs privacy laws to one side for a moment, the Mosley connection is just bizarre. Can you imagine your reaction if someone told you two years ago that a member of that clan would have played an instrumental role in bringing the political classes, the media and the Met into such a state of disarray? I wouldn't have hoped for the best, but in fact it has been quite a pleasure watching the Met, the Tories and News International getting sucked into a vortex of sleaze.

 

[pesh]

£2m to the family and £1m personal donation to charity by Rupert Murdoch. Thet is a lot of money but oddly my first thought was 'is that all' when I heard the story on the radio. Not sure what I was measuring it against or what I thought it should be though.....

i thought it was a decent amount of cash when i first read that this morning, but when i read that it was the same amount they gave Rebekah Wade as a payoff it seemed a bit weak...

 

[stavros]

and they (NI) and the Police are moving to close this down now. The former with the cheque book, the latter with this Official Secrets nonsense - which has even had the Daily Mail and Richard Littlejohn defending the Guardian..

The Met have dropped the move against the Graun now, haven't they?

 

[Dan U]

The Met have dropped the move against the Graun now, haven't they?

yep they have now, backfired splendidly against them. Welcome to The Met new Commissioner

 

[stethoscope]

Yes, after taking 'legal advice'

"Senior Met officer: we should not have tried to force Guardian to reveal sources"
http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2011/sep/21/met-officer-force-guardian-sources

Deputy assistant commissioner says using Official Secrets Act on journalists investigating phone hacking was 'not appropriate'"

Which also appears to contradict that previous statement that it wasn't using the Official Secrets Act?

 

[Pickman's model]

Yes, after taking 'legal advice'

i wonder if anyone will put in an foi request to find out how much was wasted on this fiasco.

 

[claphamboy]

The 'i' is reporting that journalists from The Sun, The Times & The Sunday Times are to be interviewed by lawyers acting for News Corp in a major escalation of the internal inquiry.

Staff singled out for questioning have been alarmed after being told they should retain their own legal representation before and during the interviews - although News Corp will paid their legal fees.

 

[DexterTCN]

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-...spaper-unit-sued-in-london-by-a-coulson-.html

The News Corp. (NWS) unit that published the Sun and the now defunct News of the World, was sued in London by a person identified only as “Mr. A. Coulson.”

Love it.

 

[DexterTCN]

Oh...something else too.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/ukn...eil-Wallis-while-he-was-at-Scotland-Yard.html

The former News of the World executive employed by the Metropolitan Police was secretly paid more than £25,000 by News International during his time at Scotland Yard, The Daily Telegraph can disclose.

The legality of Mr Wallis, who was effectively working as a police employee, selling potentially confidential police information to tabloid newspapers is not clear.

Maybe they should charge him under the official secrets act?

 

[stethoscope]

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-...spaper-unit-sued-in-london-by-a-coulson-.html

Over News International having stopped paying his legal fees/breach of contract apparently.

 

[DexterTCN]

This may be a way of silencing him over a difficult period, I can't see any other tactical reason (for withdrawing counsel). Likely not but I'm just going on my first thoughts.

 

[killer b]

it's purely face saving - they need to be seen to do the 'right thing' now, regardless of their contractual obligations to mulcaire, coulson et al. it's great tbh - if they keep paying, they're fucked, and if they stop paying they're fucked. war chest'll need topping up soon.

 

[two sheds]

The Met have dropped the move against the Graun now, haven't they?

I read that they have dropped it temporarily, and have specifically said that they may resume it.

 

[Termite Man]

I like the fact that the Dowlers have been able to put a price on the upset they have suffered.

 

[butchersapron]

They didn't put the price on it - New Corps did. And at the same time the Dowlers are fighting against the proposed legal reforms that would have let them off the hook, or at least allowed them to behave as they like towards towards poorer families. It's not them any fingers should be pointing at here.

 

[two sheds]

They didn't put the price on it - New Corps did. And at the same time the Dowlers are fighting against the proposed legal reforms that would have ket them off the hook, or at least allowed them to behave as they like towards towards poorer families. It's not them any fingers should be pointing at here.

Yep, the money is a bit of a persuader for News Corp not to do it again.