Informed 11


fundamentally do not understand the rights of journalists and their freedoms to report, suggesting there is insufficient training on dealing with the media.” Northern Ireland’s Chief Constable, John Boutcher, has appointed Angus McCullough KC to independently review allegations of unlawful police surveillance of journalists, lawyers and non-governmental organisations. McCullough will be advised by a group of experts who include NUJ assistant general secretary, Séamus Dooley, as well as representatives of Amnesty International, the Law Society, the Commitee on the Administration of Justice Northern Ireland, and the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission. “Te group will not be responsible for the findings, but we are shaping the scope and scale of the review,” said Dooley. “It is a genuinely independent process which should lay the foundations for solid action by the Policing Board of Northern Ireland, which has very specific statutory powers.” McCullough’s appointment


follows concerns emerging from the Investigatory Powers Tribunal (IPT) in London which is considering allegations that investigative reporters, Barry McCaffrey and Trevor Birney, were subject to unlawful covert surveillance by the Police Service of Northern Ireland. McCaffrey and Birney were arrested in 2018 aſter making a documentary on the Loughinisland massacre carried out by the Ulster Volunteer Force in 1994. Te reporters took the police to court with the assistance of the NUJ and were paid £875,000 in damages. Documents submited to the IPT suggest that unlawful surveillance of journalists may have been widespread (see box). Welsh photographer, Dimitris Legakis,


found himself arrested and charged with assaulting an emergency worker and obstructing a police officer aſter he responded to a tip-off from a friend and covered a blazing car incident in Swansea last September. Helen Clarke


died from her injuries in the fire and her husband, David, was subsequently convicted of her murder. Legakis, owner of Athena Picture


Agency, the official photographer to Swansea City, was held in police custody for 15 hours aſter his arrest. South Wales Police confiscated £6,000-worth of his equipment, including his two DSLR cameras and phone, inhibiting his ability to work. Te charges against him were dropped in April, one day before a jury trial was due to start. Judge Geraint Walters said the “disturbing” prosecution case appeared to stem from the fact that a police officer “took offence” at a professional photographer taking pictures at the scene. Te case has prompted the NUJ to call on South Wales Police Chief Constable, Jeremy Vaughan, “to start a dialogue to help clarify to police officers the role and rights of journalists”. Natasha Hirst, NUJ President and chair of the Photographers’ Council, said: “I find incredibly frustrating that anybody can be taking photos with their phones for social media and there is no regulation, but journalists must meet


Journalists spied on


Te NUJ is applying to involve itself in Investigatory Powers Tribunal (IPT) proceedings examining alleged unlawful covert surveillance of journalists by the Police Service of Northern Ireland. Te IPT is looking into the cases of investigative reporters, Barry McCaffrey and Trevor Birney, but there are claims that other journalists were also the subject of covert surveillance and had their phone data searched for evidence of police sources. Te NUJ represents members across a wide range of journalistic issues, including protection of sources and the right of the media to


our code of conduct, our editorial and industry standards, and that is not being recognised by the police,” she said. Aſter Leveson, many police forces sought to bypass the media by using social platforms. Police accounts proliferated on X (Twiter). But public trust has been undermined by a succession of scandals involving serving officers – notably the killer Wayne Couzens and serial rapist David Carrick – and some police chiefs now realise they need to work more closely with the media. Te NUJ is trying to help. Bea Bennet, NUJ senior communications officer, and David Ayrton, NUJ senior organiser, are working with the College of Policing to create a new training video for police officers.


Te NUJ does liaise where it can with the police, Michelle Stanistreet, general secretary, recently met counter- terrorism officers and special operations staff at the London Met to discuss the safety of journalists, especially Iranians working for the BBC and Iran International who are under atack from the Iranian authorities.


report independently and exercise its right to freedom of expression in the public interest, free from government interference. Te independence of the media is one of the cornerstones of any democratic society. “Te allegations are extremely disturbing and we are seeking the opportunity to assist the IPT including providing evidence about the impact of surveillance,” said Séamus Dooley, NUJ assistant general secretary. “Even when the people under surveillance are not journalists, if they are in regular contact with journalists [and are being indirectly monitored] that is equally troubling.” Te NUJ has engaged Belfast lawyer, Olivia O’Kane, to review claims by journalists who believe they were put under surveillance.


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