A new press watchdog guidance note is reminding editors of their responsibilities in reporting on national lottery winners.

The Press complaints Commission makes it clear that winners - and their families - retain the strong protection of the Editors' Code of Practice against intrusion and harassment.

The original guidance note was issued in 1995 when a major prize winner was identified in the press. It outlined the issues under the Code that newspapers and magazines should bear in mind when reporting on lottery wins.

The update, based on the Commission's experience in the mean time, covers winners who opt for anonymity, those who want publicity, "vulnerable winners" and other issues.

Part of the update said: "If winners do opt for anonymity, the Commission would generally expect the press to respect this wish - or risk breaching clause 3 of the Code.

"There may of course be exceptions to this if newspapers and magazines can demonstrate that it is in the public interest to identify an individual against their wishes, although the Commission has noted before that the size of the win alone would not be a sufficient reason for such identification."

"Other lottery winners choose to accept publicity. Having done so, they are still entitled to the protection of the Code of Practice: to expect that journalists will take care not to publish inaccurate material about them, will have respect for their private lives under the terms of Clause 3, and not harass them or their acquaintances in breach of Clause 4 of the Code.

The Commission also warned that the press should not offer rewards to people for the identity of anonymous lottery winners - or for information about their private lives - unless it is clearly in the public interest.

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