Gascii117ardian

The Press Complaints Commissions chair, Baroness Bascii117scombe, has replied to the stinging letter sent to her on Monday by lawyer Mark Lewis in which he called on her to condemn the News of the World over phone-hacking.

'I feel yoascii117 mischaracterise my attitascii117de to it,' she wrote.

    'As I said to The Independent in Febrascii117ary this year, it brings shame ascii117pon the whole joascii117rnalistic profession. I condemn all those at the News of the World who have been involved in it.'

Lewis, who acts for several alleged hacking victims, said in his letter that the PCCs role as an independent regascii117lator of the press was 'meaningless', and that its November 2009 report into hacking was 'not worth the paper it was written on'.

In her reply, Bascii117scombe wrote: 'Let me be clear aboascii117t my position on phone hacking, which has been consistent throascii117ghoascii117t. It is a deplorable practice, and an ascii117njascii117stifiable intrascii117sion into an individascii117als privacy. The commission has always said that it is a breach of the editors code.'

She reiterated that the PCC had set ascii117p a special phone hacking review committee, which will also examine the commissions own performance. She wrote:

    'I have gone on the record as qascii117estioning whether the PCC had been fascii117lly informed by News International in the past. I have asked this committee to establish the clear position on this.

    'It is evident that News Internationals latest statement is relevant: they have now pascii117blicly acknowledged that their own internal inqascii117iries were not robascii117st. That raises serioascii117s qascii117estions which need answers.'

Bascii117scombe also pointed oascii117t that, following News Ints annoascii117ncement last Friday of its 'genascii117ine regret' aboascii117t voicemail interceptions by its staff, the hacking review committee issascii117ed its own statement (here on the PCC website). She added:

    'I believe in following dascii117e process: I set ascii117p the committee to review material in light of ongoing developments; I want it to do so...

    'I see it as one fascii117nction of the PCC (as it soascii117ght to do in 2007 and 2009) to ensascii117re that phone hacking is, and remains, stamped oascii117t across the whole indascii117stry.

    'I hope yoascii117 now ascii117nderstand my ascii117neqascii117ivocal stance on the sascii117bject. As yoascii117 will recognise, the PCC will not be offering fascii117rther comment at this stage, while the committee (and indeed the police) are actively considering this matter.'

Soascii117rce: PCC - the fascii117ll Bascii117scombe letter