Judgment Approved by the court for handing down.
Ali & Aslam v Channel 5 Broadcasting Ltd
the work of HCEAs and the process of eviction, but asserted that the public interest
survived only where the Article 8 rights of those being evicted were respected, and it
was further submitted that there was “no nexus” between the public interest arising
and the information in the programme of which the Claimants complained. The
principal focus of the programme, said the Claimants, was the drama of the conflict
between Omar Ahmed and the Claimants (paragraph 186).
57.
Before addressing the more general questions, the judge recorded his conclusions as
to the behaviour of Mr Bohill. For reasons he set out in paragraphs 187-194, the
judge concluded, principally on the basis of footage contained in the rushes, that Mr
Bohill had not been behaving so as to “try and avoid any conflict and confrontation at
all costs”, which is how he had put the matter in evidence. On the contrary, Mr Bohill
had been encouraging Omar Ahmed “to taunt the Claimants because it would make
‘good television’” (paragraph 190). That should have been apparent to the film crew
and to the editorial team at BFL.
58.
Overall, the judge reached the following conclusion on the public interest:
“195. … I accept that the Programme did contribute to a debate
of general interest, but I consider that the inclusion of the
Claimants' private information in the Programme went beyond
what was justified for that purpose. As discussed above, the
programme made no reference to Mr Ali’s political activities. It
was concerned with the Claimants’ position as private
individuals. The focus of the Programme was not upon the
matters of public interest, but upon the drama of the conflict
between Omar Ahmed and the Claimants. Moreover, that
conflict had been encouraged by Mr Bohill to make "good
television" …
59.
He continued:
196. … [A] particular feature of Mr Brinkworth’s public interest
justification was the desire to show how landlords could expedite
enforcement by moving the process from the County Court to the High
Court, and the effect of this. I agree that this is a matter of public
interest. However, the Programme contained no information about the
legal processes involved beyond the statements that the landlord had
gone to the County Court eight months before and have now escalated
the case to the High Court to get the tenants evicted …. The
circumstances of the Claimants’ eviction reveal what in my view is a
matter of considerable public interest and concern, namely the fact that
the Claimants were given no notice of the eviction and were taken
wholly by surprise …. Yet this important aspect of the story is not
mentioned in the Programme, although a very attentive viewer might
deduce it.”
60.
In considering the fairness and accuracy of the programme, the judge began by
addressing the complaint of the Defendant that certain matters had not been put to Mr
Brinkworth in cross-examination. The complaint focussed initially on the separate
episodes of Mr Bohill’s behaviour. The judge ruled they had been properly put to Mr
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