David Norris (Independent)

I move amendmentNo. 43:

In page 23, between lines 33 and 34, to insert the following subsection:

"(5) In the case of a successful defamation action, the Editor and Proprietor of the newspaper which published the defamatory statement shall be liable for damages.".

This is a quite important amendment and I wish the Government had indicated it would take it on board. Senator Harris was waxing lyrical about the unfortunate position of people in newspaper offices and the pressures under which they came and he referred also to the storm of libel writs that harassed journalists. I am a journalist and a member of the National Union of Journalists. Of course, the trend is worrying to ordinary journalists but it should be made clear in the legislation that, in the case of a successful defamation action, "the Editor and Proprietor of the newspaper which published the defamatory statement shall be liable for damages". It is a question of where the buck stops. It should stop with the proprietor and the editor and not the ordinary journalist.