Cameron '˜tried to have Daily Mail editor sacked' over his support for Brexit

David Cameron sought to have the editor of The Daily Mail sacked amid fears his strong support for Brexit would undermine his campaign to keep Britain in the EU, it has been reported.
Daily Mail editor Paul DacreDaily Mail editor Paul Dacre
Daily Mail editor Paul Dacre

The former prime minister approached the paper’s proprietor Lord Rothermere in the run-up to last year’s referendum urging him first to rein in Paul Dacre and then to remove him altogether, according to BBC2’s Newsnight.

A spokesman for Mr Cameron said it was “wrong” to claim he believed he could determine who edited The Daily Mail.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

The spokesman did, however, acknowledge that he privately made the argument to both Lord Rothermere - who was a known Remain supporter - and Dacre that the UK was better off inside the EU.

According to Newsnight, Mr Cameron tried to persuade Dacre to “cut him some slack” in a private meeting in the No 10 flat in early February, but Dacre insisted he would not temper the paper’s editorial line.

The following month, Dacre was said to have been told by a Westminster source that Mr Cameron had tried to persuade Lord Rothermere to sack him.

Dacre was said to have been “incandescent” and the then prime minister’s intervention only stiffened his determination to campaign for Brexit.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

A spokesman for Lord Rothermere refused to confirm or deny the claims.

The spokesman told Newsnight: “Over the years, Lord Rothermere has been leant on by more than one prime minister to remove Associated Newspapers’ editors but, as he told Lord Justice Leveson on oath, he does not interfere with the editorial policies of his papers.”

Dacre also declined to comment on whether Mr Cameron had sought his dismissal.

In a statement he said: “For 25 years, I have been given the freedom to edit the Mail on behalf of its readers without interference from Jonathan Rothermere or his father. It has been a great joy and privilege.”

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

A spokesman for Mr Cameron said: “It is wrong to suggest that David Cameron believed he could determine who edits the Daily Mail.

“It is a matter of public record that he made the case that it was wrong for newspapers to argue that we give up our membership of the EU.

“He made this argument privately to the editor of the Daily Mail, Paul Dacre, and its proprietor, Lord Rothermere.”