A Woman and the Irish Independent

Complaint

The complainant said, through her solicitors, that an article published in the Irish Independent about her financial affairs was in breach of Principle 1 (Truth and Accuracy), Principle 3 (Fairness and Honesty), Principle 4 (Respect for Rights) and Principle 5 (Privacy) of the Code of Practice for Newspapers and Periodicals. She complained in particular about a sentence in the article which she said was untrue.

The newspaper argued that the article was a follow-up to an article published in another newspaper the previous week concerning an aspect of the complainant’s financial affairs that had been the subject of intense public scrutiny. It stood by its report and said that since the subject matter of the article was a matter of considerable public concern, it had not breached the complainant’s privacy.

Decision

The words complained about were not presented as a fact, but were attributed to “a claim”. In the circumstances, the words complained about do not represent a breach of Principle 1 of the Code of Practice, since they were appropriately attributed and presented as an unconfirmed report. No evidence was offered that any other aspect of the article presented a breach of Principle 1.

As there was no evidence that the material in the article was obtained by methods prohibited by Principle 3, or unfairly or dishonestly procured or published, and as no evidence was presented that would support a complaint under Principle 4, these complaints are not upheld.

To the extent that the complainant’s financial arrangements had come under legitimate public scrutiny, she was a public person. An article about an aspect of her financial affairs directly related to those arrangements, in the opinion of the Press Ombudsman, falls within the general provisions of the Preamble to the Code of Practice relating to the public interest. Publication of such information is also protected by Principle 5, which states that the right to privacy should not prevent publication of matters of public record or in the public interest. The article therefore does not involve a breach of Principle 5 of the Code.

20 August 2009

The Complainant appealed the decision of the Press Ombudsman to the Press Council of Ireland.