Anger at £137 fee to report on Conservative conference

TORY Party bosses are under pressure to scrap ‘undemocratic’ fees on journalists reporting on their annual conference.

They face claims that charging each journalist £137 to accredit for this autumn’s event in Manchester runs counter to the party’s claim to defend Press freedom.

In a stand-off between the Press and the Tory Party, national, regional and local newsrooms are currently refusing to sign up for the conference in protest at the fee.

And in a joint statement last night, editors and publishers across the industry called on the Tories to abandon the levy.

The statement – released by the Society of Editors, News Media Association, Foreign Press Association and News Media Coalition – said: ‘To live up to the Government’s mantra on Press freedom, the accreditation fee... must be scrapped.’ The Tory Party says the ‘modest charge’ help covers the cost of thousands of media passes that are issued but not collected.

But news industry representatives said they had offered alternative ways to reduce those costs. They also noted that no other UK political party charges for accreditation and that, for more than a year, they have been ‘seeking discussion with the Conservative Party to review these charges’.

They added: ‘In a democratic society, all party conferences are of political and public importance. There should be no charging barrier for journalists to be able to act as the eyes and ears of the public.’

The row comes after Culture Secretary Lucy Frazer boasted earlier this month of how the Government was ‘taking steps to increase Press freedoms’.

A Tory Party spokesman said: ‘A modest charge was introduced to discourage over-accreditation by some media outlets.

‘There are a range of exemptions on offer owing to the challenging financial situation many local outlets face.’