Public Confidence in the Media and Police

Debate between Edward Miliband and Oliver Heald

Wednesday 20th July 2011 Commons Chamber

[Oliver Heald (North East Hertfordshire) (Con)]

rose—

[Edward Miliband]

I give way to the hon. Gentleman; he and I are old sparring partners.

[Oliver Heald]

The Leader of the Opposition rightly talks about the independence of the police, yet he seems to have expected that, during the course of a police inquiry, the assistant commissioner would go and see the Prime Minister and talk about the emerging evidence. It seems, extraordinarily, that the assistant commissioner had a similar expectation. Can the Leader of the Opposition tell us whether that is the way it went on in Labour years? Is that what was happening? If not, will he say now that he thinks the police should be truly independent?

[Edward Miliband]

This is not about the operational independence of the police and I am surprised that the hon. Gentleman wants to return to these issues because it is the wall of silence that was erected around the Prime Minister that meant that he did not hear the facts about Andy Coulson, which were facts that he should have heard. We need reforms—