Friday 6 September 2013

New industry-backed press standards regulator IPSO could be up and running early next year


The Independent Press Standards Organisation, the planned press regulator backed by the majority of the newspaper and magazine industry, could be up and running early next year.

IPSO is supported by the Newspaper Society, Newspaper Publishers Association, the Scottish Newspaper Society and the PPA, representing the magazine industry. It has been rejected by the Guardian, which claims IPSO would be too much under the control of the big newspaper publishers.

Paul Vickers, chairman of the Industry Implementation Group, said in a statement: "The Industry Implementation Group – including representatives from across the national, regional, periodical and Scottish press - met earlier this week to finalise the legal and contractual documentation that will establish the new press regulator, the Independent Press Standards Organisation.

"Very significant progress has been made. A number of suggestions, both from publishers and from other parties, have been incorporated and the four key documents will shortly be ready for a final consultation across the newspaper and magazine industry.

"Work is also well under way on the financing arrangements for IPSO; and the Foundation Group under the Chairmanship of Lord Phillips of Worth Matravers is undertaking the task of selecting an independent Appointments Panel to appoint the first Board.

"We hope that we will therefore be in a position to begin signing contracts that will establish IPSO during late September and October, with a view to implementation of the new regulatory system, fully compliant with the Leveson principles, in the early part of the new year."

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