Tuesday, January 22, 2008

Blogging Tory parliamentary candidate ordered to pay £6,500 in libel case...

A blogging Tory parliamentary candidate has been ordered by the High Court to pay £6,500 - and make a grovelling public apology to the Labour MP she faces at the next general election.

Esther McVey lifted a dodgy story from the Mail on Sunday which wrongly accused Wirral West MP Stephen Hesford of planning to take part in a cricket "junket" to Australia and New Zealand.

Tory Party Leader David Cameron is probably this morning wishing he hadn't described Esther McVey as "a great ambassador for the Conservatives"

The case should serve as a warning to the blogging community that the same libel laws apply to blogs just as they do to other media.

5 comments:

Praguetory said...

Unless I'm misreading your link, I think you've libelled her. The case was settled out of court.

'But before the case was heard by the High Court in Chester yesterday, the two opponents agreed the settlement.'

This case is more like the Bob Piper Annie Shepherd situation.

Anonymous said...

Whoops.

fairdealphil said...

praguetory:

Whatever the Defendant (Tory PPC) may say, she was ordered yesterday by Mr Justice McKinnon in the High Court to pay £6,500 in costs and damages to Mr Hesford (Labour MP).

The Daily Pundit said...

You missed this.

fairdealphil said...

daily:

thanks for the link...i had seen it, but was wary of linking to a dodgy blog...

I'd would rather not find myself in the High Court, particularly not as a Defendant...!!!