English libel law 'not fit for purpose', says justice minister

"English libel law is not fit for purpose", said minister for justice Lord McNally at an event to mark the one year anniversary of the Libel Reform Campaign last week.

Speaking a year after the campaign was launched by Index on Censorship, English PEN and Sense about Science, Lord McNally said getting libel reform right would be one of the things on which he would measure his ministerial career, according to a press release.

"The Government values the contribution the Libel Reform Campaign has already made to raising awareness of the need for a fresh look at defamation laws in England and Wales," he said.

"We agree the law needs reforming and have been working on a draft defamation bill, which we hope to publish and put out for consultation in March."

The justice minister's comments followed questions from libel reform campaigners about the government's commitments to libel reform within its draft defamation bill, due to be published next year.

At the second reading of Lord Lester's Defamation bill in July Lord McNally told the House of Lords that the government would "take the initiative" and lead a "constructive process of reform" with its own draft bill.

Lord Lester's bill, which had its first reading in May, included seven main areas for development of current legislation, including: a modernisation of several defences; a requirement on claimants to demonstrate they have suffered real harm; a requirement on corporate claimants to prove financial loss; and for most cases to be heard by a judge alone.

His bill followed the publication of the 'Free Speech is Not For Sale'  report in November last year, by Index on Censorship and English PEN, which recommended 10 reforms for current English libel legislation.

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