Independent review to examine governance of Press Complaints Commission

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An independent group, led by outgoing PCC board member Vivien Hepworth, will carry out a review of the Press Complaints Commission, it was announced in a release yesterday. The PCC heralded the review - the first since the creation of the self-regulatory body in 1991 - as Baroness Peta Buscombe's 'first major initiative' since she took over as chairperson from Sir Christopher Meyer in April 2009 .

The review, which will take place over six months and announce its findings in spring 2010, aims to examine the operation of the PCC board, sub-committees and secretariat; the Charter Commissioner and Charter Compliance Panel and the PCC's Articles of Association, it said in the release.

It will try to find out how transparency in the system can be enhanced and whether the independent systems of accountability can be improved.

Hepworth, executive chairman of Grayling in the UK and Brussels, is currently a lay member of the board, but she will step down before the end of her final term in order to carry out the review.

Three additional appointments to the group are planned and will include another independent member, and one with 'senior experience' of the newspaper and magazine industry.

The PCC recently answered questions on its performance in front of the House of Commons select committee examining press standards, privacy and libel. The committee's findings are yet to be announced; the PCC said it will take them into consideration in the new review.

Most recently, PCC director Tim Toulmin gave evidence as part of the committee's enquiry into new allegations made by the Guardian newspaper  about phone hacking at News International titles.

Earlier in the year the PCC came under harsh criticism in a report by an independent review group initiated by the Media Standards Trust. Former chairman Sir Christopher Meyer strongly criticised the report's methods and findings , which the MST then defended in turn .

Time for a review

"I have been impressed by many aspects of the PCC's work since I took over as Chairman - not least, the extent to which it works hard behind the scenes to minimise intrusion and resolve complaints quickly and amicably," said Baroness Peta Buscombe, in the release.

"However, there has not been an independent review of the PCC’s governance since it was created in 1991, and I think it is important periodically to reflect on the way an organisation works to make sure we have taken account of good practice elsewhere and wider public expectations."

Vivien Hepworth - a former chairman of Surrey and Sussex Healthcare NHS Hospital Trust  - said that in her view, this initiative 'underlines the PCC's flexibility - something that is one of the hallmarks and advantages of non-statutory regulation'.