Chris Jefferies (Picture: SWNS)

The landlord of Bristol architect Jo Yeates has called for an an independent inquiry into allegations the police leaked information about him to journalists following his arrest on suspicion of her murder.

Christopher Jefferies was subjected to a stream of libellous newspaper articles in the days following his arrest for the murder of Miss Yeates.

He won substantial damages in a libel action brought against a number of national newspapers last year.

In a statement issued through his lawyers yesterday, Mr Jefferies said evidence given to the Leveson inquiry into press ethics confirmed his concerns about the way police handled his arrest in December 2010 and in particular about leaks to the media.

Mr Jefferies was responding to evidence – disputed by Avon and Somerset police – that the Daily Mirror editor Richard Wallace gave the Leveson inquiry last month.

“It has become apparent that evidence put before the Leveson inquiry confirms our earliest concerns about the confidentially with which the arrest and detention of our client was dealt with by those investigating the murder of Joanna Yeates,” the statement from law firm Stokoe Partnership said.

“As a result of our attendance at the police station and of our reviewing of the material in the media, it became apparent that information had been deliberately leaked by as yet unidentified individuals in flagrant breach of their duty.

“Our client strongly believes this to be the case, as there was information within the public domain which was only known to those privy to the investigation material.

“Our client is of the view that this information had been leaked and we share that view.

“There needs to be an independent inquiry into this potentially criminal conduct on the part of officers from Avon and Somerset police, as well as the Crown Prosecution Service.

“As regards any legal action against Avon and Somerset police for wrongful arrest, this is a matter which remains under review.”

Colin Port, the chief constable of Avon and Somerset police, denied the claims made by Wallace and said the force was “actively challenging” his comments.

Mr Port said in a statement: “I now have a copy of the letter sent by these solicitors direct to the media 12 months after the event, and which has not been directed to Avon and Somerset Constabulary.

“I am surprised by the contents of the letter which appear to be based on the opinions expressed by Richard Wallace, editor of the Mirror, when he gave evidence to the Leveson inquiry last week, and which we are actively challenging.”

Vincent Tabak was eventually found guilty in October of the murder of Miss Yeates in her Clifton home.

The Wikipedia 'blackout' page

A Bristol-based board member of the Wikimedia UK group has defended the decision for a ‘black-out’ of the Wikipedia online encyclopaedia, in protest against proposed American internet piracy laws.

Steve Virgin, from Fishponds, said the membership decision to shut down the English-language version of Wikipedia for one day was in protest against laws that would “threaten freedom of speech”.

The English version of the website became inaccessible at 5am GMT on Wednesday morning. Instead of a database of more than 3.8 million articles, visitors are greeted with an open letter encouraging them to contact Congress in protest.

Opponents of SOPA (Stop Online Piracy Act) and PIPA (Protect Intellectual Property Act) argue they impose unfair responsibilities on websites such as Wikipedia to check that no material they host infringes copyright. Under current laws if websites remove pirated content when they are notified by the copyright holder they are not liable for damages.

The proposed laws also make it easier for American copyright holders to cut off access to foreign websites hosting unlicensed copies of films, music and television programs.

The legislation has been backed by an intensive lobbying campaign by major media owners, including Rupert Murdoch, and opposed by the giants of Silicon Valley, including Google and Facebook.

Speaking to Bristol24-7, Mr Virgin said: “A debate amongst global Wikipedians has been underway for the last few weeks about the merits of proposed SOPA and PIPA legislation in the United States.

“The community believe that if this legislation is passed it would undermine due process in the eyes of the law, threaten freedom of speech online and give sweeping and draconian powers to regulatory authorities, who would then be seriously tempted to misuse them.”

Wikipedia is the sixth-most visited website in the world, according to Alexa. The protest will be matched on other major websites such as Reddit, a popular link-sharing service, and is unprecedented for the English version of Wikipedia, although the Italian version mounted a blackout protest in October against new libel laws.

On Friday the White House said it would not approve key parts of the bills, however, effectively sending them back to the drawing board. A statement from President Obama’s internet advisors said the provisions for blocking foreign websites “pose a real risk to cybersecurity”.

Jimmy Wales, the founder of Wikipedia who visited Bristol last year to mark the organisation’s 10th anniversary, described the laws as “destructive”.

“This is an extraordinary action for our community to take – and while we regret having to prevent the world from having access to Wikipedia for even a second, we simply cannot ignore the fact that SOPA and PIPA endanger free speech both in the United States and abroad, and set a frightening precedent of internet censorship for the world.”

Mirror editor Richard Wallace

The editor of the Daily Mirror has said the stories his paper ran about the landlord of murdered Bristol architect Jo Yeates was a “black mark” on his record.

Speaking at the Leveson Inquiry into press standards yesterday, Richard Wallace said he regretted the coverage last year of Chris Jefferies.

“We obviously caused him and his nearest and dearest great distress which I regret, personally, greatly and I regard it as a black mark on my editing record,” he told the inquiry.

Mr Jefferies had been the police’s first suspect following the discovery of Ms Yeates’ body in Failand on Christmas Day.

The Mirror ran a front-page story in which a picture of Mr Jefferies was used above the headline: “Jo Suspect is Peeping Tom.”

But it was neighbour Vincent Tabak who was eventually found guilty of murder, and Mr Jefferies told the inquiry late last year that he would never recover from the ordeal of being vilified in the press after he was questioned by police.

In July 2011 eight newspapers, including the Daily Mirror, paid libel damages to Jefferies, while the Mirror was also fined £50,000 and The Sun fined £18,000 for contempt of court.

Mr Wallace said he was “not proud of what we did to Mr Jefferies at all”, and told the inquiry that “if there are ways we can ensure we don’t do that again, I’m all for that”.

“Mr Jefferies’ name will be imprinted on my brain forever more,” he added. “It will change the way I deal with stories like this in future.”

Mr Wallace said the stories came from a number of sources including the police, public records, internet searches, friends, acquaintances, former tenants and ex-pupils of Jefferies.

He added that in off-the-record police briefings, Avon & Somerset police appeared confident that “Mr Jefferies was their man”.

Last night a police spokesman said: “There were no off-the-record briefings. We’re examining Mr Wallace’s evidence in detail.”

Meanwhile, Mr Wallace said it was possible that illegal phone hacking took place at the Mirror. He said that hacking “might well” have been going on at The Mirror in the early 2000s, when Piers Morgan was editor, but said he had no knowledge of it.

Private Eye editor Ian Hislop will give evidence to the Leveson Inquiry today. Other witnesses due to address today’s hearing include Guardian editor Alan Rusbridger, Times editor James Harding and Sunday Times editor John Witherow.

Television doctor Phil Hammond has been made redundant from his job as a GP due to changes in the way NHS services in Bristol are provided.

Dr Hammond, 49, star of Have I Got News For You and correspondent for Private Eye, will lose his job when the walk-in service he has been working at is merged into the new South Bristol Community Hospital.

He broke the news on his Twitter feed – telling his followers that he was to stop practising part time at the surgery in Bristol next March.

Dr Hammond, who also hosts BBC Two show ‘Trust Me, I’m a Doctor’ told his 8,000 followers: “I’m losing my GP job in March as part of the PCT cost rationalisation exercise. Anyone need a GP in Bristol/Bath/Somerset (part time)?”

The writer and broadcaster, who broke the story of the Bristol heart scandal in 1992, lives with wife Jo and their two children in Bishop Sutton, near Bristol, and refused to comment yesterday when contacted about his job loss.

NHS Bristol confirmed Dr Phil Hammond had been working for one of its walk-in GP centres – but denied he was losing his job because of cost-cutting.

The Trust said the service Dr Hammond worked for in the city, operated for the trust by healthcare provider BrisDoc, was moving to the new development in south Bristol.

They would not confirm or deny whether Dr Hammond would be keeping his job or not.

A spokesman said: “It is not to do with cost reorganisation. South Bristol Community Hospital is opening at the end of March and the walk-in service will be merged into it.

“There are ongoing discussion with the service provider about what will happen to the walk-in centre jobs.”

BrisDocs confirmed Mr Hammond will lose his job when its walk-in clinic, run on behalf of NHS Bristol, closes next March.

Dr Ray Montague, chairman of the company, said: “We had a contract to provide a GP walk-in service in south Bristol. Bristol NHS Trust has decided that in the current environment it was duplicating GP services that already existed. So they have taken the view that there were other priorities and gave us notice that the contract will be ended.”

Bristol could have its own local TV station by 2014, under plans announced by the government yesterday.

Culture Secretary Jeremy Hunt has identified the 20 towns and cities which are to be in the vanguard of his Local TV experiment. This follows the announcement in August of 65 potential sites for Local TV.

The government hopes to license the first local stations from summer 2012.

“I am confident these new stations will provide local communities with programming which is relevant to their daily lives, will support local democracy, boost the big society and enhance local communities,” said Mr Hunt.

The “pioneer” Local TV areas, which could have stations by 2014, will be: Bristol, Belfast, Birmingham, Brighton and Hove, Cardiff, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Grimsby, Leeds, Liverpool, London, Manchester, Newcastle, Norwich, Nottingham, Oxford, Plymouth, Preston, Southampton and Swansea.

These were said to have “significant levels of interest from potential operators”.

The towns and cities earmarked were chosen by media watchdog Ofcom, which examined the interest from potential operators and local audiences, as well as ensuring the projects were technically viable.

Ofcom will now begin a further consultation on those areas, starting at the end of next week. The process is expected to take between eight and 12 weeks, after which the licences will be awarded.

Local TV is expected to air on Channel 6 on Freeview and is being paid for with capital funding of £25m, and then a further £5m a year towards running costs for the first three years, taken from the BBC licence fee.

But beyond this, Mr Hunt has made it clear the services must be self-sustaining, funded by advertising.

Mr Hunt says: “Local TV providers will need to produce quality content that people want to watch, which in turn will make it attractive to advertisers.”

The Department of Culture said that three pieces of legislation will shortly be laid in Parliament to make the necessary changes.

Chris Jeffries (Picture: SWNS)

The Bristol landlord of murdered architect Joanna Yeates is to give evidence to the Leveson Inquiry into the ethics of the media later today.

Christopher Jeffries, from Clifton, accepted substantial and undisclosed libel damages earlier this year from eight national newspapers over allegations made against him over her death.

His solicitor said at the time that Mr Jeffries had been the “latest victim of the regular witch hunts and character assassination conducted by the worst elements of the British tabloid media”.

Mr Jeffries was arrested soon after Joanna Yeates’ body had been found on Christmas Day 2010, thanks in no small part to the real killer, Vincent Tabak, giving false information to police.

In the days that followed, Mr Jeffries was hounded by the press, leading him to say that he felt like he had been “raped”.

As the inquiry resumes today, following a week of evidence from the likes of the parents of missing toddler Madeleine McCann, singer Charlotte Church and TV presenter Anne Diamond will also take the stand.

Meanwhile, political blogger Paul Staines, who writes as Guido Fawkes, will be summoned this week to explain how he came into possession of a witness statement by former Downing Street communications chief Alastair Campbell.

Mr Staines published the material on his website yesterday – which included Mr Campbell’s fear that a newspaper may have hacked his phone messages, and into those of the then prime minister’s wife Cherie Blair while she was living at No 10.

A statement on the inquiry website said the judge was very concerned to hear of the publication in spite of strict confidentiality agreements under which witness statements are disclosed in order that witnesses may prepare for the evidence.

Mr Staines wrote on his blog that he had obtained the statement by “legal means”.

Olly Murs on stage at The Mall Cribbs Causeway for the Christmas Lights switch-on event

Olly Murs has told Bristol24-7 he has backed the show’s decision to axe rock-star wannabe Frankie Cocozza.

The X-factor star was speaking before 7,000 fans turned out to watch him at The Mall’s Christmas Lights Switch On and Concert last night.

He treated fans to a live performance after switching on the lights at Cribbs Causeway,  performing his new single “Dance With Me Tonight” which is due to be released on November 20. “It was great to get on stage and perform my new single.” says Olly.  “The response I got from the crowd was incredible. My new single went down really well and it was great to get everybody in the Christmas spirit!”

The Mall gave out around 7,000 free tickets to the event which was held in a purpose built outdoor arena, next to the Winter Wonderland. Fans travelled from as far as Cornwall, Wales and Norfolk to watch the Xtra Factor presenter take to the stage.

Speaking before the event, Olly also quashed rumours of a future duet with Robbie Williams, saying: “Me and Robbie are really good mates but people keep asking me about this supposed duet and there really isn’t one. I’m working with Rizzle Kicks at the moment and if there’s other collaborations then great but I’m not planning a duet with Robbie.”

Murs, who was runner up in the sixth series of the X-Factor and who now presents ITV2’s The Extra Factor, praised the show for helping him with his rise to fame and backed the decision to get rid of renegade rock-star wannabe Frankie Cocozza after he broke competition rules. The X-Factor has a zero tolerance policy to things like bad language, binge drinking and drug taking.

The 27-year-old said: “You have to act as a role model on the show because there are a lot of people watching, a lot of kids watching. You have to be conscious of that. It got to the point with Frankie that he had to leave. He shouldn’t had did what he did (sic) and you have no choice but to leave.”

He added: “Regardless of where you come in the show, it gives you a great platform. The further you get in the show, it shows you have got a bit of a fan-base there. If you leave quite early, people obviously didn’t like you.”

The Essex lad is not the only X-Factor personality heading this way for Christmas lights switch-ons either. Next Thursday, the latest X-Factor evictee Johnny Robinson (who was voted off, rather than leaving under a shroud of controversy) will head to nearby Yate for their big Christmas lights switch-on.

Robinson, who publically declared his love for X-Factor judge Gary Barlow, was seen by some of the panel as another Louis Walsh novelty act but Murs disagrees, saying Johnny has the voice to be a serious singer.

He said: “I think so-called ‘novelty’ acts like Johnny Robinson, Two Shoes and Jedward are brilliant for the show. They are entertainers and you want to see acts like that. Johnny and Two Shows are great singers; Jedward maybe not but they sing and dance and they’ve made millions.”

Murs played a headline gig at Bristol’s Colston Hall back in May and said he was happy to be back. But he admitted what he looked forward to most about Christmas was his mum’s roast dinner and the annual family gathering back in Essex.

“I had a really great time when I played Bristol and I’m glad to be back,” he said. “The Mall looks amazing; you’ve got the lights, you’ve got the snow and it’s really lovely.”

Some 20 jobs, including in local news output, will go at the BBC across the region as the corporation announced major plans to cut costs in the wake of the licence fee freeze.

However, up to 60 jobs will be relocated from Birmingham to Bristol, as the city cements its premier role for documentary making in the UK.

The BBC said it intends to eliminate about 2,000 jobs across the UK and radically change its programming as it attempts to slash 20% from its budget over the next five years.

Announcing the cuts in a report called “Delivering Quality First,” the BBC said the changes would be “the most far-reaching transformation in our history”.

Changes to local radio programming will see BBC Radio Bristol offer a regional service during the afternoon, with Radio Bristol’s drive-time, breakfast and mid-morning shows escaping the axe. National programmes for the whole of England will replace local programmes in the evening.

But programmes such as the Hairy Bikers, Countryfile and the coverage of the RHS flower shows will move from BBC Birmingham’s Mailbox retail centre to Bristol.

A report on the changes states: “Factual programming for BBC television and Radio 4 would be moved out of Birmingham and consolidated largely to Bristol, though television production investment with independent producers in the Midlands would increase.

Those staff moving to Bristol will be based at the BBC’s broadcasting complex in the city, on  Whiteladies Road.

The BBC’s controller of factual production, Tom Archer, said: “Bristol is the largest centre of documentary and factual in-house television production outside London and is, of course, home to the jewel in the BBC’s television crown, the Natural History Unit.

“A world-class independent production and post-production centre has grown up around it.

“It simply makes sense to combine the strengths of Bristol’s factual television programme-making with Birmingham – and to locate it where we have the strongest base.”

Strike action is likely as staff protest at the level of cuts, which will see more repeats and less coverage of local and national sport.

Bristol City Council Leader Barbara Janke said: “Today’s announcement shows that the BBC remains 100% committed to Bristol and it is very welcome news that they plan to re-locate significant additional national television and radio production to the city. This builds on and is testament to our strengths in the creative and digital media sector.”

Teenagers are more likely to try cigarettes if they see actors smoking in films, research from Bristol University has suggested.

The findings have led to calls for films which glamorise the habit to carry the same age classification as those containing sex and violence.

The research revealed that 15-year-olds who saw the most films showing smoking were 73% more likely to have tried a cigarette than those exposed to the least. They were also almost 50% more likely to be a current smoker than those least exposed.

And even after taking account of alcohol use and smoking among their peers, both of which are known to influence initiation of smoking, these teenagers were still 32% more likely to have tried a cigarette themselves.

The UK Centre for Tobacco Control Studies wants such films to fall under the same stringent rules applied to films showing violence and sex, arguing that children need to be protected from potentially harmful imagery.

The study, using data collected from the Children of the 90s project, looked at 5,166 15-year-olds and asked whether they had seen 50 films which were randomly selected from 366 box office hits released between 2001 and 2005 and compared these findings with whether they had ever tried a cigarette or were current smokers.

Dr Waylen, from the School of Oral and Dental Sciences, said: “More than half the films shown in the UK that contain smoking are rated UK15 or below, so children and young teenagers are clearly exposed.

“Our results confirm an association between this exposure and youth smoking in this country, indicating that raising the certification to 18 in the UK is likely to lower smoking rates among youth.

“Given that smoking depictions in films are not consistent with the ban on smoking in public places in the UK and that the relationship may be causal, a precautionary principle should be pursued. Films ought to be rated by exposure to smoking in the same way that they are currently rated by level of violence. Smoking and its adverse consequences are certainly a larger public health problem. Such a policy would also make the movie ratings system consistent with the ban on tobacco advertising in all other media.”

The British Board of Film Classification said its current guidelines were “proportionate; take due account of the available evidence of harm; and reflect the clear wishes of the public”.

Chris Jefferies, landlord of murdered architect Joanna Yeates (Picture: SWNS)

The landlord of Bristol architect Joanna Yeates will be able to give evidence to the investigation into phone hacking and media ethics and practices.

Chris Jefferies was arrested last Christmas on suspicion of the murder of Ms Yeates, whose body was found in Failand on Christmas Day after a week-long search.

He was eventually released without charge after neighbour Vincent Tabak was arrested and charged with her murder.

In July, he accepted substantial and undisclosed libel damages from eight newspapers over allegations made against him over her death.

In a statement outside court, his solicitor said Mr Jefferies had been the “latest victim of the regular witch hunts and character assassination conducted by the worst elements of the British tabloid media”.

Now, he has been granted ‘core participant status’ in the inquiry headed by Lord Justice Leveson, and joins a host of celebrity names on the list.

Harry Potter author JK Rowling, who famously guards her privacy, is one of a number of prominent public figures expected to give evidence.

Rowling is one of 46 celebrities, politicians, sportsmen, other public figures, and members of the public who believe they have been the victims of media intrusion.

Others on the list include Anne Diamond’s former husband, Mike Hollingsworth; former nurse turned model and TV presenter Abi Titmuss; Sheryl Gascoigne; and Mark Oaten, the former MP who had to pull out of the Liberal Democrat leadership race after tabloid revelations about his sex life.

Several celebrities who have allegedly had their phones hacked, including Hugh Grant, Sienna Miller and Calum Best, are among the 46 named on Leveson’s list of core participants.

MPs Chris Bryant, Tessa Jowell, Denis MacShane, Simon Hughes, and former Labour deputy leader Lord Prescott also feature, along with a smattering of sports stars including jockey Kieron Fallon and former Premiership footballer Garry Flitcroft.