Mail on Sunday contacted shops over ‘Tribune’ edition

THE Irish Mail on Sunday asked shopkeepers to display a Sunday Tribune lookalike edition on empty spaces previously reserved for the defunct newspaper, a court has heard.

Yesterday, Sebastian Hamilton, editor of the Irish Mail on Sunday, defended the decision to publish the edition — saying it was a marketing exercise to gain new readers and not an attempt to mislead people.

Associated Newspapers Ireland, owners of the Irish Mail on Sunday, is being prosecuted by the National Consumer Agency at Dublin District Court for breaching the Consumer Protection Act.