David Lammy has said the UK will go further to tackle abusive and spurious lawsuits aimed at silencing whistleblowers and journalists, raising the prospect of further legislation next year.
The deputy prime minister told campaigners and officials at the launch of the government’s anti-corruption strategy that he was determined to crack down on the practice known as Slapps – strategic lawsuits against public participation.
Excessive legal threats have been used in several cases in an attempt to silence reporting on Russian oligarchs, as well those who tried to expose the Post Office Horizon scandal and allegations against Mohamed Al Fayed.
The Ministry of Justice said the first priority would be to action the limited provisions in the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act 2023, which tackle Slapps that relate to economic crimes.
It also said it was a “priority commitment” in the strategy to consider the future approach for comprehensively tackling all Slapps. Progress on any new law is likely to be slow – the strategy gives a target date of 2029.
Rishi Sunak had previously backed the former Labour MP Wayne David’s backbench attempt for a wider ban on Slapps, but the legislation did not get through parliament before the election.
Lammy, a vocal supporter of tougher laws on Slapps while in opposition, confirmed for the first time in many months that the government still intended to take further steps.
“We’ll protect the people who shine a light on corruption in the first place, the journalists and activists who shield the public’s right to know,” he said in his speech at the summit.
“By stopping the powerful from using abusive lawsuits – so-called ‘Slapps’ – to intimidate reporters, silence investigations, and bury the truth under a mountain of legal threats. Because sunlight is always the best disinfectant.”
Campaigners believe there will be a further push for legislation on Slapps by justice ministers before the next king’s speech, for either a tight standalone bill or as part of a wider one.
The prime minister, Keir Starmer, who has publicly backed action on Slapps, has been said by some sources to be more cautious given his own legal background and his desire to leave it up to judges to strike out meritless cases. There was no promise to ban Slapps in Labour’s manifesto.
The all-party parliamentary group on anti-corruption and responsible tax welcomed the wider strategy but said the commitment on Slapps was “lacking key details”.
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It said the pledge to consider the future approach for comprehensively tackling all Slapps by 2029 “lacks the urgency that the problem demands, considering the prime minister himself has described the current situation as ‘intolerable’”.
Speaking at Mansion House in London, the justice secretary said that the new corruption strategy would mean extra funding for an elite anti-corruption police unit, with a global summit on countering illicit finance to be hosted by the UK.
There will also be a new official review of stolen or illegitimate assets in the UK to find the vulnerabilities exploited by criminals.
But campaigners at the summit expressed disappointment at a lack of commitment to tackle political financing, closing loopholes for foreign donations and cryptocurrency donations, and placing limits on spending.
