Committee Reports > List of Committees > Dáil > 1953 > Committee on Procedure and Privileges > Report - Premature Disclosure of a Report of a Select Committee

APPENDIX

Dáil Éireann,

Baile Atha Cliath.

Editor, 28th May, 1953.

Sunday Express,

London Express Newspaper, Limited,

Fleet Street,

London, E.C.4.

Dear Sir,

I am to inform you that the Committee on Procedure and Privileges have been charged by Order of Dáil Éireann to investigate the publication by your newspaper in its issue of 3rd May of a news item entitled “Judges to get rise in Pay.” The news item purported to inform your readers concerning increases in salaries of judges and justices in Ireland which were the subject of the Report of a Select Committee of Dáil Éireann not then published to the House.

I am to state that the Committee have compared the contents of the news item with the terms of the Report of the Select Committee since published and have found them in substantial agreement. The disclosure of the terms of the Report prior to its publication to Dáil Éireann was a breach of the privileges of the House and has been so declared by the Committee.

I am instructed by the Committee to ask you to explain fully the circumstances under which you became a party to such a breach of the privileges of Dáil Éireann.

(Signed) P. O’CONNELL,

Clerk to the Committee.

Editor

of the

Sunday Express.

Sir,

With reference to the finding of the Committee of Procedure and Privileges that the publication of the article in the Sunday Express of May 3rd relating to the salaries of the judges in Eire is a breach of the privileges of the Eire Parliament, I beg leave to inform the Committee that the Editorial Department of the Sunday Express in Manchester which is responsible for the Eire editions of this newspaper acted quite innocently of any intention to offend against the dignity due to the Eire Parliament or against its privileges.

I might add that it is the settled policy of this newspaper to refrain from any interference with or criticism of the Governmental authorities in Eire and I tender to the Dáil my sincere apologies for this inadvertent breach.

I shall be obliged if you would be good enough to have this message conveyed to the Dáil.

Yours obediently,

(Signed) HAROLD KEEBLE.

Patrick Hogan, Esq., T.D.,

Chairman of the Committee

of Procedure and Privileges.

Editor

of the

Sunday Express.

Dear Sir,

Your letter of the 28th May would seem to have crossed my letter of the same date addressed to the Chairman of the Committee of Procedure and Privileges.

Referring to the last paragraph of your letter, I would inform the Committee that when the information about the impending increases in the judges’ salaries came into the office of this newspaper there was nothing to suggest to the Editorial staff or to anyone that it was the subject of a Report of a Select Committee of Dáil Éireann. We had no knowledge of the existence of such a Committee. The information came in as an ordinary piece of news and was treated as such. There was, in fact, nothing to suggest any reason why the paragraphs should not be published.

As, however, the Committee consider that we have committed a breach of the privileges of Dáil Éireann, or have been a party to such a breach, I repeat my letter of the 28th May and express the hope that the House will in the circumstances accept this explanation and apology in satisfaction of the breach.

Yours faithfully,

(Signed) HAROLD KEEBLE.

The Clerk to the

Committee on

Procedure and Privileges.