Recommendation L68: PACE Amendments Consideration
From An Inquiry into the Culture, Practices and Ethics of the Press, published 29 November 2012.
Recommendation
The Home Office should consider and, if necessary, consult upon: (a) whether paragraph 2(b) of Schedule 1 to the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 (PACE) should be repealed; (b) whether PACE should be amended to provide a definition of the phrase "for the purposes of journalism" in s13(2); and (c) whether s11(3) of PACE should be amended by providing that journalistic material is only held in confidence for the PACE provisions if it is held or has continuously been held since it was first acquired or created subject to an enforceable or lawful undertaking, restriction or obligation.
In brief (written by this site)
The Inquiry asked the Home Office to consider amending statutory protections for journalistic material. In May 2024, Lord Sharpe of Epsom, Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State at the department, stated that "All the recommendations have been addressed", though his answer did not mention the specific amendments to the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 (PACE) (Lord Sharpe of Epsom, May 2024). Earlier, in February 2013, the department accepted the recommendation and announced that it would consult before the end of 2013 on proposed changes to PACE, including the protection of journalistic sources (Home Office response, Feb 2013; Home Office, Feb 2013).
AI-generated summary of the record on this page, checked by a second model and automatic checks, 1 Oct 2026. The record below is the sources' own words.
Government response
The Home Office accept this recommendation we will consult on the proposed changes to PACE before the end of this year (2013). The consultation exercise will specifically consider the potential impact of the recommended change to section 11(3) of PACE on the protection of journalistic sources.
Blanket government agreement does not establish acceptance or delivery by each addressee. Some response passages cover groups of recommendations.
Scope of the government response
PM David Cameron responded to all 92 recommendations with a single statement accepting them "in principle" or "in part". No per-recommendation response was published.
Delivery
Home Office states no delivery position (23 May 2024)
The Leveson Inquiry made eight recommendations (68 and 75-81) concerning the press and the police, focused on providing greater transparency and openness. These were accepted by the Government, the College of Policing and the then Association of Chief Police Officers (superseded by the National Police Chiefs’ Council). All the recommendations have been addressed.
From: Police: Journalism (written question HL4705)
Site note: The source gives this passage once, for recommendations 68 and 75 to 81 together. The same words are recorded on L68, L75, L76, L77, L78, L79, L80 and L81.
Source
Responsible bodies
Themes and tags
Who has spoken
- Home Office
Response, delivery statement