Foreign newspapers slam new British press regulation system as 'scary' and 'a mess' Toronto Star: 'It's like victims helped judges establish sentencing guidelines' The Australian: 'It's a press regulator with the power to maul unruly hacks' NY Times: 'Regulations could stifle journalism that brought scandal to light' Gulf Daily News, Bahrain: 'Best regulatory force of all is called the readers' By Mark Duell and Sam Greenhill Foreign newspapers and columnists have roundly criticised the new British press regulation system, with one describing it as "scary" and another as 'a mess'. Canada's Toronto Star said it was "as if crime victims had helped judges establish sentencing guidelines" and the Australian warned of a "press regulator with the power to maul unruly hacks." The New York Times added that 'it would be perverse if regulations enacted in response to this scandal ended up stifling the kind of hard-hitting investigative journalism that brought it to light in the first place'. Worried: The New York Times voiced its concerns over 'regulations enacted in response to this scandal' that could 'stifle the kind of hard-hitting investigative journalism that brought it to light in the first place' And Arthur Macdonald of the Gulf Daily News in Bahrain said: "We already have in place the best regulatory force of any organisation on the planet. They are called the readers. It comes after Britain's main political parties agreed on Monday to create a new system to regulate the news media following the phone hacking scandal. Public outrage over phone hacking, which went beyond celebrities to include victims of crime and abducted children, pushed the Government to act, but it said it had still protected press freedom. The compromise will establish a new press regulator, introduce fines of up to £1million and oblige newspapers to print prominent apologies where appropriate. Opinions: A columnist in the Australian warned of a 'press regulator with the power to maul unruly hacks' But Heather Mallick of the Toronto Star wrote: 'Phone-hacking victims, who, astonishingly, helped devise the watchdog - it's as if crime victims had helped judges establish sentencing guidelines - denied that journalists would be unfairly constrained. 'Phone-hacking victims, who, astonishingly, helped devise the watchdog - it's as if crime victims had helped judges establish sentencing guidelines - denied that journalists would be unfairly constrained' Heather Mallick, Toronto Star Tabloid journalism was a mess, largely thanks to Rupert Murdoch. But so is this regulatory solution. Brendan O'Neill said in the Australian: "In Britain, as a result of a deal stitched up behind closed doors this week, we now have a scary system of state oversight of journalism. A royal charter will create a press regulator with the power to maul unruly hacks and editors. And Mr Macdonald in the Gulf Daily News said: 'Neither British politicians nor anyone else is going to solve [the problems] by creating some sort of bureaucratic watchdog that will regulate what journalists and proprietors do.'