NEWS CORPORATION’S James Murdoch’s position has come under new pressure following British prime minister David Cameron’s declaration that he has “questions to answer” about his testimony to the House of Commons this week.
Mr Murdoch, who is the chairman of satellite broadcaster BSkyB and News Corporation’s top executive for Europe and Asia, may face calls this week to stand down from his BSkyB role because so much of his time is being consumed by the News of the World scandal.
On Thursday, two former top News International executives jointly said they had told him in 2008 about a key e-mail. If true, this statement would undermine his claim he had not known phone-hacking at the tabloid involved more than one rogue reporter.
Questioned about the declaration by former News of the World editor Colin Myler and News International’s former libel lawyer Tom Crone, Mr Cameron said: “Clearly James Murdoch has got questions to answer in parliament and I’m sure he will do that.”
The board of BSkyB is meeting on Thursday, with some shareholders seemingly concerned that Mr Murdoch’s ability to lead the broadcaster will be hampered by the News of the World – though others seem prepared to use the crisis to force BSkyB to pay out larger dividends.
In a letter to John Whittingdale, chairman of the Culture Media and Sport Committee, Mr Murdoch strongly rejected the allegations that “have been made as to the veracity of my testimony”, insisting that he had “answered truthfully”.
Labour MP Tom Watson said the Myler/Crone statement could be “the most significant moment of two years of investigation” – though it must be noted that it appears to contradict evidence both of them gave two years ago to the committee.
Meanwhile, the Solicitors’ Regulation Authority (SRA) has launched a formal investigation into the role played by Harbottle Lewis, the solicitors who examined hundreds of News of the World e-mails in 2007.
In his testimony to the Commons inquiry, Mr Murdoch said the solicitors had told the company no other journalists on the tabloid – apart from Clive Goodman, the paper’s royal correspondent, who had by then been convicted for hacking – were involved.
A copy of the letter sent in May 2007 by the firm appears to back up Mr Murdoch’s version of events, since it says it reviewed the e-mails taken from the accounts from a number of journalists, including Andy Coulson, who had by then resigned as editor.
“I can confirm that we did not find anything in those e-mails which appeared to us to be reasonable evidence that Clive Goodman’s illegal actions were known about and supported by both or either of Andy Coulson, the editor, and Neil Wallis, the deputy editor, and/or that Ian Edmondson, the news editor, and others were carrying out similar illegal procedures,” it reads.
The SRA inquiry will be pursued “vigorously and thoroughly”, said chief executive Antony Townsend. But he added: “No conclusions have been reached about whether there may have been any impropriety by any solicitor.”
Yesterday Mr Murdoch was standing by his testimony. “I was questioned thoroughly and I answered truthfully,” he said in a letter to Mr Whittingdale.
