Supplementary memorandum from the Cabinet
Office (TS 33a)
The Media Emergency Forum (MEF) is a working
group set up in 1996 to ensure that vital information is communicated
effectively to the right people during an emergency. The MEF provides
a solid framework for developing trust and confidence between
the media and the authorities through a growing awareness of each
other's responsibilities.
The work undertaken by the MEF includes developing
protocols and high-level contacts for use in emergencies, and
providing feedback to improve communications in the future after
major incidents such as the deaths at Morecambe Bay in 2004, the
floods in Carlisle in 2005, and the events of 7 July last year.
The MEF is chaired by Howell James, the Permanent
Secretary, Government Communication, and has representatives from
the national broadcast media, the European Broadcast Union, the
Society of Editors, the Newspaper Publishers Association, the
Newspaper Society, the devolved administrations, local authority
emergency planners, and the emergency services. The Secretariat
is provided by the Cabinet Office.
During 2003 a number of separate Regional Media
Emergency Forums were established. These bring together local
media, and emergency responders and planners to deliver effective
public information and news practice locally and regionally during
an emergency.
The MEF report 9/11: Implications for Communications,
and a Technical Working Party report on Government/media communications
give further detail on the MEF's specific activities. For your
reference, both of these publications are available on the UK
Resilience website, which is at: http://www.ukresilience.info/
May 2006
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