At the weekend, in an attempt to cling onto power in Egypt, Hosni Mubarak appointed a vice president and a new cabinet. To the Egyptian people, to outside observers, even to the American government, this was too little too late. Things had already moved so far that nothing but an orderly transition of power had become necessary. On a much smaller and more prosaic level, the Press Complaints Commission this week announced the formation of a ‘working group’ to consider new information about phone hacking, and to make recommendations following the new police investigation.
As in Egypt, this is too little too late. The working group, composed of two lay members and one editorial member, has no powers, no money and no sanctions. They will no doubt do their utmost to show concern and to recommend that it never happens again, but we know from past experience how ineffectual such concern and recommendations have been.
