The only public interest defence I can see
is that the guy they entrapped is clearly too stupid to be in a position of serious responsibility.
On the other hand, that's probably why he became a 'junior minister'.
The Mirror's 'but we're not owned by Rupert Murdoch...' defence has worn so thin that it should be on a force-feeding regime. If the 'Sun on Sunday' had done this then they'd be busy closing down their offices today before a completely brand new paper called 'The Tabloid Times on Sunday' turned up out of the blue in mid-October.