How David Cameron was out-manoeuvred by Ed Miliband on press regulation


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8:45 am - March 20th 2013

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by Edward Benson

This week, however David Cameron tries to spin it, the Rubicon was crossed. Facing defeat in the House of Commons over his plan for press regulation he went back to the negotiating table; in essence he caved in, even Malcolm Tucker couldn’t convincingly make the case that regulation underpinned by statute is not “statutory regulation”.

This, however, is so much more than an embarrassment for the leader who said state interference with the press went against his core principles. He may have just handed over the 2015 election two years early.

David Cameron could have stood firm on Monday. He could have gone into Parliament, lost the vote on introducing his Royal Charter and portrayed himself as a martyr for press freedom, pledging (with a stern voice) that he would repeal the statute if the Conservatives won a majority in 2015.

Just imagine the uproar the press would have caused in the lead up to the election; Cameron would have been ‘the defender of freedom expression’ a man ‘not afraid to take unpopular decisions for the good of Britain’, Miliband would have been ‘Stalinistic’ just like ‘his old mentor Gordon Brown’.

With them on your side who knows what could happen, remember 1992?

Instead, he blinked. He couldn’t face another humiliating defeat and meekly gave Miliband near-everything he wanted. You just have to take a brief glance at the websites of the right-wing press to see how they’ve taken this U-turn.

Cameron may have avoided a literal defeat, but, he has suffered a huge figurative one; will the press trust him again? They certainly haven’t rounded on the Labour leader, nearly every article is about Cameron’s betrayal, how they have been stitched up by their natural allies.

This has been unquestionably a huge triumph for Ed Miliband, he’s played his hand beautifully. He has been clear in his aims since the publication of the Leveson report, he sided with the victims against the press, and he not only got what he wanted, but, by securing an all-party agreement on essentially his own terms, he looked positively Prime Ministerial.

Winning a vote against the government might have looked more spectacular, but, by compromising he has diverted the wrath of the newspapers onto Cameron, a masterstroke.

Expect to see more stories of ‘backbencher dissatisfaction’ and ‘leadership challenges’ in the future, while, for Ed Miliband, this may well have been his defining moment.

—
Edward Benson is a writer and student.

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Reader comments


1. Ian

Hmmm.

I came here hoping for some insight into “How” David Cameron was out-manoeuvred by Ed Miliband on press regulation.

Maybe someone with inside knowledge of the negotiations who can give us genuine insights into the “How” of the issue?

The “How” was sadly conspicuous by its absence.

Can LibCon please avoid misleading “Business Insider” style headlines in future.

Thanks

2. cjcj

Ed Miliband’s “defining moment”.

A squalid 3am backroom deal.

Yes, you may be right.

3. Richard

Telling that this would never have been allowed under America’s First Amendment.

4. Stephen W

They can hear the sound of you kissing Miliband’s arse from several miles away. Seriously, please, the noise is deafening.

5. mike cobley

Ultimately, who gives a toss while media ownership is essentially unregulated in this country? Cameron may have claimed that “state interference with the press went against his core principles”, but corporate/owner interference he is totally at ease with. Far as I`m concerned, this whole topic is a diversion from the ownership issue – they can come back when they have something rational to say about that.

6. TONE

And when it all goes pear-shaped (as it will), Millipede will look even more of a fool than he does now while Cameron can wash his hands of it.

7. Shatterface

Instead, he blinked. He couldn’t face another humiliating defeat and meekly gave Miliband near-everything he wanted

Everything Hugh Grant blackmailed Milliband into wanting.

I hope people are bookmarking all these threads gushing about Milipede’s ‘victory’ because in the months ahead, as the new legislation starts to bite people in the arse, we are going to see a lot of bloggers distancing Milliband and claiming that Cameron is responsible.


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