An MP who is launching an inquiry into excessive and possibly unlawful court secrecy says a new type of gagging order is hampering the work of investigative journalists.
John Hemming said the new breed of injunction, which was used in relation to a case in the high court in London last week, meant journalists could face jail simply for asking questions.
"This goes a step further than preventing people speaking out against injustice," said Hemming, the Liberal Democrat MP for Birmingham Yardley and a longtime campaigner against secrecy. "It has the effect of preventing journalists from speaking to people subject to this injunction without a risk of the journalist going to jail. That is a recipe for hiding miscarriages of justice."
Hemming has labelled the new gagging order the "quaero injunction" after the Latin word "to seek".
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