Urgent need to reform libel laws

YESTERDAY was a good day for newspapers and their right to investigate and report on matters of public interest.

Given the gravity of Ian Bailey’s claim that he had been branded a murderer by the press, the outcome of his libel case is a resounding vindication of the media’s role in covering the appalling murder of French film maker Sophie Toscan du Plantier near Schull in West Cork just two days before Christmas seven years ago, a crime that remains unsolved to this day.

Paltry and derisory are perhaps the words that best describe damages awarded to the freelance journalist in his libel action against seven Irish and British media groups.