MP to complain to News Corp chief over online film that he claims provides a 'how-to guide' to the procedure

This article is more than 9 years old

This article is more than 9 years old

Labour MP Tom Watson is to complain to News Corporation chief executive James Murdoch over an "irresponsible" Sun online video that the politician claims provides a "how-to guide to waterboarding".

The MP for West Bromwich East said the online film, which showed the Sun's chief feature writer, Oliver Harvey, volunteering to undergo the procedure, could help "criminals and bullies" to take up the practice.

"Whatever your views on waterboarding, the actions of the Sun newspaper are utterly irresponsible," the MP said.

"Like it or not, we have a gang and bullying culture in parts of Britain. There are criminals and bullies who will view this video as a 'how-to guide to waterboarding'. I'm writing to James Murdoch to demand that he intervenes to stop the video being published."

In the online video Harvey justified his report, which he said came in the wake of former US president George's Bush's comments that the practice, regarded as torture in many countries, saved the UK from terrorist attacks. This claim has been dismissed by UK counterterrorism officials.

In a Sun article trailed on the website's front page as "The day I went to hell", Harvey recounts his experiences, alongside a video of the procedure. He writes that this was carried out by a "balaclava-clad interrogator" whom he describes as "acting like a CIA agent desperate to get information from a terrorist".

Harvey was able to endure the procedure for only 12 seconds and said that he would have told his captors "anything" if the simulation had been genuine. He wrote: "This is no 'interrogation technique' but torture pure and simple with no place in a civilised society. I would have told my interrogator anything they wanted to hear to make it stop."

The video is preceded by a warning stating: "Warning: The following video was filmed under controlled conditions in the presence of a qualified doctor. Do not try this at home."

Spokespeople for the Sun and News International were unable to comment on Watson's remarks at the time of publication.

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