Screenshot of Press Complaints Commission website
Sir Christopher Meyer is to stand down as chairman of the Press Complaints Commission (PCC) at the end of March next year.

Meyer will have completed his second three-year term as chairman before he leaves the role.

Tim Bowdler, chairman of the Press Standards Board of Finance, said Meyer was a 'prime mover' in extending the PCC's remit to audio-visual content on newspaper and magazine websites in February 2007.

During Meyer's tenure the commission also launched a digital editon of its editors' codebook and called for reputable news sites to display a standard digital quality mark.

“I came into this job convinced that self-regulation administered by an independent PCC was the only system of regulation compatible with a free press in a democratic society. I will leave the PCC reinforced in that belief,” said Meyer in a press statement.

The former diplomat said his successor would have to continue to develop the commission to face the challenges of the digital age.

Last year the commission received more complaints about online material than print with 56 per cent of objections received relating to online content.

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