- Matt Hancock said it was right part two of Leveson Inquiry had been scrapped
- Culture Secretary said: ‘The world has changed, and I want to look to the future’
- Launched Government review into journalism, to be led by Dame Cairncross
State regulation of the news media would damage liberal democracy, the Culture Secretary warned yesterday.
Matt Hancock said it was right the second part of the Leveson Inquiry into the Press had been scrapped. ‘The world has changed, and I want to look to the future,’ he told the Oxford Media Convention.
‘I tremble at the thought of a media regulated by the state in a time of malevolent forces in politics. Get this wrong and I fear for the future of our liberal democracy.’
Matt Hancock said it was right the second part of the Leveson Inquiry into the Press had been scrapped. ‘The world has changed, and I want to look to the future,’ he told the Oxford Media Convention
Launching a Government review into journalism, which will be led by Dame Frances Cairncross, Mr Hancock said it would ‘explore whether intervention may be required to safeguard the future of our free and independent Press’.
He added: ‘It is about making sure we don’t wake up in five years’ time to find high-quality journalism has been decimated and our democracy damaged as a result.’
He also praised the media’s reporting on the case into the murder of teenager Stephen Lawrence, led by this newspaper. He said: ‘The scrutiny … the uncovering of wrongs and the fuelling of debate is … critical to a healthy democracy.’