Giggs' lover should be able to tell her story says former Press Complaints Commission chairman

Former Press Complaints Commission chairman Sir Christopher Meyer said on the BBC's Question Time programme last night that Imogen Thomas, the ex-lover of Ryan Giggs gagged by the courts, should be allowed to tell her story.

He said: "The woman involved in the Giggs case has had her identity sprayed all over the newspapers from the very outset. She has a right to freedom of expression. The judges have decided that right is overridden by the footballer's right to privacy. I personally think that, in this case, the freedom of expression of the woman should have been permitted.

"The footballer, who was worried about the damage being done to his family life, well he bloody well should have thought of that before starting out on the affair."

Meyer's opinion seems at odds with that of current PCC chair Baroness Buscombe who told Newsnight this week that if Giggs had asked for the Commission's help it would have stopped newspapers publishing the story.

• The Sun reports today that it has been gagged from publishing a story about Karen Matthews, who was jailed for kidnapping her own daughter. It says: "A High Court hearing in Leeds banned us on privacy grounds from printing an article which had been completely substantiated - and there were no complaints about its accuracy. The newspaper was "commended" by the judge, Mr Justice Moylan, for acting "responsibly" by approaching authorities in advance of publication. But although the story was in the public interest, the judge ordered a total ban."