libel

Moments ago, it was announced via Simon Singh's lawyers that... well, here's what they said:

The BCA today served a Notice of Discontinuance bringing to an end its ill-fated libel claim against Dr Simon Singh arising out of criticisms he made of its promotion of treatments for childhood ailments.

Dr Singh's predicament as the sole defendant in an action brought in respect of a comment piece in the Guardian newspaper (to which the BCA never directed any complaint) was seen as a rallying point for those concerned about the abuse of UK libel laws in connection with scientific debate.

Just a quick post - the BCA have responded to my request for a statement on today's ruling (surprisingly quickly). Click on the link to read it. I'll blog more on this when I have time later.

Statement

As the British Chiropractic Association's battle with Simon Singh continues to work its way through the legal system, chiropractors are counting the fincancial costs of a major backlash resulting from a libel action that has left the Lord Chief Justice "baffled". What was originally a dispute between the BCA and one science writer over free speech has become a brutally effective campaign to reform an entire industry.

A staggering one in four chiropractors in Britain are now under investigation for allegedly making misleading claims in advertisements, according to figures revealed by the General Chiropractic Council.

Continue reading at The Guardian!

I'll be filing a piece for The Guardian tomorrow (Edit: now appearing Monday) on the latest developments surrounding Simon Singh's judge-baffling libel case. In the meantime, I've been approaching various people for comment, and I've managed to get a statement from the BCA. Here it is in it's full, informative glory, followed by my own in-depth analysis.

"Thanks for your email and request for interview and comment. The BCA is currently not providing any comment but as matters progress this might change and if it does we'll contact you. Sorry we can't help at this time."

Just after I clicked "submit" on my previous article on the Singh vs. BCA affair, I discovered via @JackOfKent that the British Chiropractic Association have released a more, er, in-depth statement on the latest ruling. You can get it at their website, or cached here for safe-keeping. I'll reproduce the text below (since this is a press release and I am apparently a sort of press now I feel this is fair), then comment.

Simon Singh was granted the right to a full appeal at the Courts of Justice this morning by the presiding Judge, Justice Laws, in the on-going libel case started by the British Chiropractors Association.

The judge overturned the original judgment by Justice Eady on Simon's use of the word 'bogus' in a Guardian article to describe claims by chiropractors to treat certain childhood illnesses. He said that there was no question of the good faith of the appellant (Simon) who wrote what he honestly believed with the purpose of serving the public interest. [Edit: 'overturned' is not the strict legal term here, see Jack of Kent for the lawyer's version]

This is an article about Simon Singh, but more than that about the wider issues at stake. In recent months I've written about the BPS, BACP, GCC, BCA, CNHC, and other unimaginative groups of letters that act as regulators or professional bodies for auxilliary health industries in Britain. Simon Singh's battle against the BCA is one chapter in a broader story that links all these cases together. In this post, I want to take a step back, and explore that wider story.

There are four distinct but related stories that have bubbled along for months now (among many others). The CNHC ('OfQuack') are a hapless alternative medicine "regulator" set up by an alt med charity run by Prince Charles at considerable expense to the taxpayer.

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BCA Statement in Response to Today's Ruling

Singh Case Puts Chiropractors Under Siege

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British Chiropractic Association Give Statement on Singh Libel Hearing

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Six Problems with the BCA's Latest Statement on Singh (Updated)

Simon Singh wins the right to a full appeal: UPDATED

Drowning in Alphabet Soup: The Wider Battle for Health Regulation

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