PRCA welcomes Joint Committee's proposal to strengthen protection from online defamation in Draft Defamation Bill

London, 21 October 2011 - The PRCA welcomes the report findings made by the Joint Committee on the Draft Defamation Bill.

The PRCA, in particular, welcomes the committee’s further attempts to improve the legal protections to businesses and organisations to online defamation, and agrees with its attempts to change the culture of anonymous online defamation.

The committee’s key argument was that the government’s initial proposals did not go far enough in tackling the high costs of legal proceedings, and correctly identified that this can be rectified with more out-of-court settlements and the abolition of jury trials.

The committee also acknowledged that a careful balance needs to be struck between freedom of expression and the ability to protect reputation. In its response to the government’s consultation in June, the PRCA argued that the current balance was largely fair. The Joint Committee stated that there needs to be a threshold of “seriousness” to add to the “substantial harm” test that should be applied when determining harm to reputation. However, the PRCA is concerned that this threshold is indeterminate and does not rectify the problems highlighted in the government’s initial proposals.

In its response the PRCA stated: “trust can be eroded – repeated small attacks can have a significant impact (to reputation)”.  Therefore the PRCA would like to see the government better determine what it considers to be “substantial” as long term financial losses due to reputational damage may not necessarily be immediately apparent in smaller cases.

To see the Joint Committee’s report click here.

To see the PRCA’s response during the consultation process please click here.

 

-ENDS-

Notes to Editors

For media enquiries please contact Tom Hawkins – tom.hawkins@prca.org.uk

 

About the PRCA


Who we are: Founded in 1969, the PRCA is the professional body that represents UK PR consultancies, in-house communications teams and PR freelancers and individuals.  The PRCA promotes all aspects of public relations and internal communications work, helping teams and individuals maximise the value they deliver to clients and organisations.

What we do: The Association exists to raise standards in PR and communications, providing members with industry data, facilitating the sharing of communications best practice and creating networking opportunities.

How we do it and make a difference: All PRCA members are bound by a professional charter and codes of conduct, and benefit from exceptional training. The Association also works for the greater benefit of the industry, sharing best practice and lobbying on the industry's behalf e.g. fighting the NLA's digital licence.

Who we represent: The PRCA represents many of the major consultancies in the UK, and currently has more than 250 agency members from around the world including the majority of the top 100 UK consultancies. We also represent around 70 in-house communications teams from multinationals, UK charities and leading UK public sector organisations.

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