Covid: Minister's complaint against Sun over chips story thrown out

Vaughan Gething had his complaint against the Sun dismissed

A complaint by Wales' health minister that a story in the Sun was inaccurate and intruded on his private life has been thrown out by the press watchdog.

The Independent Press Standards Organisation (Ipso) said the tabloid did not breach its code when it pictured Vaughan Gething sitting on a bench to eat chips with his family.

Ipso said the photo - taken during the first lockdown - was not an invasion of privacy as it was in a public place.

Mr Gething has declined to comment.

The photo was taken on a weekend in May before the Welsh Government guidance changed allowing people to eat while out exercising.

Conservative politicians had questioned whether Mr Gething had been within the rules as they had stood at the time - the minister said he had not broken the restrictions.

Mr Gething complained to Ipso about the article in the Sun on the grounds it was inaccurate because it implied he broke lockdown rules.

He also complained the photograph published of him eating chips was an invasion of privacy.

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What did Ipso say?

After an investigation, it concluded there had not been a breach of its code and the complaint was not upheld.

Its ruling said: "The article did not report, as fact, that the complainant had breached the rules.

"The quotation attributed to the former Welsh Conservative leader raised the possibility that the complainant may have broken the rules, but this was clearly distinguished as the opinion of that individual.

"Furthermore, the article had included the complainant's position that there was 'absolutely no breach of the guidance or the rules themselves'."

The IPSO committee also ruled the photograph published alongside the article in the Sun was not an invasion of privacy because it was taken in a public place and "did not include any information in respect of which they had a reasonable expectation of privacy".