THE Independent Press Standards Organisation (Ipso) is set to rebuke The Daily Telegraph for its “misleading” front-page story that claimed First Minister Nicola Sturgeon secretly wanted David Cameron to return as Prime Minister after the May General Election.
A preliminary finding by Ipso is thought to have found that the story headlined “Sturgeon’s secret backing for Cameron” breached the first clause of the Editors’ Code of Practice. This states that publications “must take care not to publish inaccurate, misleading or distorted information”.
The investigation followed a complaint from the SNP, which denied the story immediately after it was published in April. Sturgeon said at the time it was “categorically, 100 per cent untrue”.
If the finding is confirmed, Ipso is likely to insist on a correction with “due prominence”, which is likely to mean a page two correction with a mention on page one.
It would also be the first time since Ipso was established in September that it has threatened to criticise a national newspaper over a front-page story.
A spokesman for the First Minister said: “We lodged a complaint with Ipso on the basis that we believed The Telegraph’s conduct in producing this story fell far short of the expected journalistic standards.
“Subsequent events have proven conclusively that the story was entirely untrue, and we now look forward to Ipso publishing their adjudication on the case.”
The article was based on a memo leaked from the Scottish Office – a disclosure sanctioned by the then Scottish Secretary Alistair Carmichael, who subsequently lied about it.
He apologised to Sturgeon and the French Ambassador after “accepting full responsibility” following Sir Jeremy Heywood’s inquiry into the leak. He said he had made an “error of judgement on a political matter” and that he would have resigned from government had he still been a minister.
However, Carmichael has resisted calls to quit as an MP and is facing a court case brought by some of his constituents in Orkney and Shetland under the Representation of the People Act, 1983.
The People Vs Carmichael set up a crowdfunding appeal to fund their legal action with an initial target of £60,000.
The group has raised £61,100 in 24 days with seven days to go until its deadline.
Kathryn Hudson, the parliamentary commissioner for standards, is also investigating whether Carmichael – the Liberal Democrats’ sole MP in Scotland – breached the Commons Code of Conduct.
The Telegraph had reported that Sturgeon would “rather see” Cameron win the General Election, and believed that Ed Miliband was not “Prime Minister material”. It then published the leaked memo in full.
Ipso has sent a draft adjudication to the SNP and the newspaper, which is also thought to be critical of the paper’s failure to call the SNP.
However, the regulator refused to comment on the ruling before it was published.
A spokesman told The National: “Ipso does not comment on any complaint while it is being investigated and this investigation is ongoing.”
The memo was also raised in the Commons yesterday, when Peter Grant, the SNP MP for Glenrothes, highlighted a freedom of information request that had been rejected because it would involve the release of information that “could damage” Britain’s relationship with France.
Grant said: “The request was about the circumstances in which a then minister of the crown authorised the deliberate leaking of a confidential but probably inaccurate record of a private conversation between another minister of the crown and a senior representative of the French government.”
He asked for an urgent statement from Scottish Secretary David Mundell, to “reassure the House the government’s attitude to secrecy and open government is based on what is in the interests of the public”.
However, Leader of the Commons Chris Grayling insisted the government had no particular reason to have a “vested interest” in the matter. But he added: “It is important governments can operate in a way that is in the interests of the country.”
He pointed Grant to the role of the Information Commissioner and tribunal that enables decisions to be challenged.
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