London police access to editor’s confidential phone records unacceptable, says OSCE Representative
VIENNA, 3 September 2014 – OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media Dunja Mijatović today said that the London Metropolitan Police’s access to The Sun political editor Tom Newton Dunn’s phone records while investigating a source of leaks without his consent is unacceptable.
“The police seemed to have deliberately ignored the law protecting journalists’ confidential sources in their attempt to find the identity of the person who leaked information to the press,” Mijatović said. “They accessed records without court permission or oversight which is required by law.”
Police disclosed they used Dunn’s phone records in a report released on 1 September about an investigation into a disturbance on Downing Street in September 2012 involving police officers and Tory chief whip Andrew Mitchell. The Sun wrote about the incident and Mitchell resigned the next month. The police officers involved were not prosecuted but were eventually dismissed because of the matter. Dunn was questioned by police but declined to identify his source.
The OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media observes media developments in all 57 OSCE participating States. She provides early warning on violations of freedom of expression and media freedom and promotes full compliance with OSCE media freedom commitments. Learn more at www.osce.org/fom, Twitter: @OSCE_RFoM and on facebook.com/osce.rfom.