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In spite of the divergence of views, it seems to me that there are two points that people should agree on. First, the press and others should not get away with telling lies. And a softly spoken apology to a loudly spoken claim IS getting away with it. Second, harassment is unacceptable. Freedom of speech is not a defence against behaving worse than a stalker. Let's enforce these points before going down the road of more onerous privacy legislation. To me for instance, if a rich person has sex with a poor person and the poor person wants to tell the press, that should be their privilege.

The press support their figleaf, what a surprise.

As I've already intimated, the day the PCC is 'abolished' or replaced by something that works for the public can't come a moment too soon.

Before the top Policemen fall on their swords establish what the lesser rank Policemen were corruptly offering, illegally selling. Was it drugs? inluence? Planning permission? Contracts? .......... They were not hacking just not uncovering the hacking. The Police did not profit from the hacking or the scoops.
Cash is a very crude exchange and leaves a paper trail (even off shore)
Perhaps those who paid actually intended the payments to be eventually obvious!!.
The trading of information/leaking e.g.witness statements at an illegal time to the other side may be responsible for unsafe convictions. Perhaps those convicted will cosult their diaries and work out if they were convicted in exchange for a will or a conveyance or a divorce by a friendly member of the supreme court for a cut price job ....untraceable bribe no money changed hands.
This is the century of the cross references and leaks.

The rich and famous keep making the mistake of thinking public outrage is in some way supportive of the likes of Hugh Grant and Max Moseley. No way. Imogen Thomas can sing like a canary. No one cares. But interfering with the privacy of ordinary people who are victims of crime or killed in the line of duty, that's completely different. The elite can go hang.