- guardian.co.uk, Tuesday June 8 1999 17.57 BST
"This case was about more than Jonathan Aitken. It was about the
dishonest misuse of our libel laws to close down legitimate scrutiny
of the people we elect to govern us.
"If Mr Aitken had won he would have dishonestly taken up to £2 million from the Guardian by way of costs and aggravated damages. The case should serve as a warning to future litigants who may be set on stifling scrutiny. Libel is not a game: it is too often used by the rich, the powerful and the crooked to suppress proper reporting and fair comment.
"No-one using the law against others can complain if the law is, in turn, used against them. We can only hope that this case may, unwittingly, have served the cause of free speech after all."
