Ruling

Resolution Statement – 05039-24 Wilton v Plymouth Herald

  • Complaint Summary

    Chris Wilton complained to the Independent Press Standards Organisation that Plymouth Herald breached Clause 1 (Accuracy) of the Editors’ Code of Practice in an article headlined “Farmer removes ponies after plans turned down”, published on 29 July 2024. A substantively similar version was published on plymouthherald.co.uk headlined “Iconic ponies vanish from beauty spot near Plymouth”.

    • Published date

      23rd January 2025

    • Outcome

      Resolved - IPSO mediation

    • Code provisions

      1 Accuracy

Summary of Complaint

1. Chris Wilton complained to the Independent Press Standards Organisation that Plymouth Herald breached Clause 1 (Accuracy) of the Editors’ Code of Practice in an article headlined “Farmer removes ponies after plans turned down”, published on 29 July 2024. A substantively similar version was published on plymouthherald.co.uk headlined “Iconic ponies vanish from beauty spot near Plymouth”.

2. The article reported that the complainant, a farmer, had removed a flock of Dartmoor ponies from the Rame Head peninsula grazing site. It referred to the complainant as a “tenant farmer” and reported that he “has taken the step of removing the iconic grazing ponies from a beauty spot, over a refusal of planning permission for a house at a prominent site. Chris Wilton stated that due to his development plans being rejected, he lacks the necessary facilities and manpower to care for the ponies.”

The article also appeared online under the headline “Iconic ponies vanish from beauty spot near Plymouth”, published on 26 July 2024, and was substantively similar.

3. The complainant said the article was inaccurate in breach of Clause 1 where it reported that he had removed the ponies because he was refused planning permission for a house. The Complainant said that this was inaccurate, as the ponies had in fact been removed because the Higher Level Stewardship Agreement with Natural England, which permitted pony grazing on the land ended in October 2023. He said there was no connection between the plan to build a home and the removal of the ponies.

4. The Complainant also said the article was inaccurate in breach of Clause 1 where it stated that he was a “tenant farmer” on the site, and that he had removed the ponies. The Complainant said that this was inaccurate because his father was the tenant farmer on the site.

5. In its first response to the complainant after being made aware of his concerns, the publication offered to publish the following clarifications:

Print:

In an article entitled “Farmer removes ponies after plans turned down” published on 29 July 2024 we stated that Mr Chris Wilton moved 16 Dartmoor ponies from his acreage. We have been asked to clarify that the land on Rame Head, where the ponies grazed, is instead farmed by Mr Wilton’s father, and that it was the farming partnership of the two men which removed the ponies from the site, rather than Mr Wilton personally.

Online article:

A previous version of this article stated that Mr Chris Wilton moved 16 Dartmoor ponies from his acreage. We have been asked to clarify that the land on Rame Head, where the ponies grazed, is instead farmed by Mr Wilton’s father, and that it was the farming partnership of the two men which removed the ponies from the site, rather than Mr Wilton personally. The article has been amended accordingly.

6. The complainant did not accept the publication’s offer of a resolution. He considered it did not sufficiently correct the text of the article, and the online version still stated that the ponies were removed because his planning application to build a house on the site had been refused. The complainant said the correction did not reflect the correct position: that the ponies had been removed because the agreement with Natural England had ended. 

Relevant Clause Provisions

Clause 1 (Accuracy)

i) The Press must take care not to publish inaccurate, misleading or distorted information or images, including headlines not supported by the text.

ii) A significant inaccuracy, misleading statement or distortion must be corrected, promptly and with due prominence, and — where appropriate — an apology published. In cases involving IPSO, due prominence should be as required by the regulator.

iii) A fair opportunity to reply to significant inaccuracies should be given, when reasonably called for.

iv) The Press, while free to editorialise and campaign, must distinguish clearly between comment, conjecture and fact.

Mediated Outcome

7. The complaint was not resolved through direct correspondence between the parties. IPSO therefore began an investigation into the matter.

8. During IPSO’s investigation the publication offered to publish the following correction beneath the headline of the online version:

A previous version of this article stated that Mr Chris Wilton moved 16 Dartmoor ponies from his acreage. We have been asked to clarify that the land on Rame Head, where the ponies grazed, is not tenanted by Chris Wilton, but rather his father, and that it was the tenant who removed the ponies from the site in accordance with the SSSI rules, rather than Mr Chris Wilton. The article has been amended accordingly.

And the following correction on page 2 in its Clarifications / Corrections column:

IN an article entitled “Farmer removes ponies after plans turned down” published on 29 July 2024 we stated that Mr Chris Wilton moved 16 Dartmoor ponies from his acreage. We have been asked to clarify that the land on Rame Head, where the ponies grazed, is not tenanted by Chris Wilton, but rather his father, and that it was the tenant who removed the ponies from the site in accordance with the SSSI rules, rather than Mr Chris Wilton.

9. The complainant said that this would resolve the matter to his satisfaction.

10. As the complaint was successfully mediated, the Complaints Committee did not make a determination as to whether there had been any breach of the Code.


Date complaint received: 05/08/2024

Date complaint concluded by IPSO: 13/12/2024