Britain's most senior policeman ordered an inquiry today into claims that private investigators allegedly working for News of the Worldreporters intercepted mobile phone messages from the phones of hundreds of celebrities and politicians.
Metropolitan Police Commissioner Paul Stephenson said he had appointed a senior officer, Assistant Commissioner John Yates, to look into the allegations against the News of the World, which is owned by News International Ltd, a subsidiary of Murdoch's News Corp.
"We will investigate thoroughly and follow the case to where it leads us," Mr Stephenson told Sky News.
The move comes after former Labour Party deputy prime minister John Prescott said he would contact police over the claims
The Guardiannewspaper reported yesterday that News Corp's News Group Newspapers, which publishes the News of the World,paid out more than £1 million to settle legal cases that may have revealed evidence of its journalists using private investigators to illegally obtain information on politicians, sports stars and entertainers while Andy Coulson was deputy editor and then editor of the paper.
Mr Prescott said he would be contacting the police to ask if his phone had been tapped, why was he not informed and why was no action taken.
“I find it staggering that there could be a list known to the police of people who had their phone tapped.
“I’m named as one of them, for such a criminal act not to be reported to me, and for action not to be taken against the people who have done it, reflects very badly on the police, and I want to know their answer.”
The Guardiansaid Mr Coulson, Conservative leader David Cameron's director of communications, was deputy editor and then editor of the News of the Worldwhen journalists were using the private investigators.
Mr Cameron is facing calls to fire Mr Coulson, who resigned as editor of News of the Worldin 2007 after one of his reporters, Clive Goodman, was jailed along with a private investigator, Glenn Mulcaire, for intercepting phone messages left for members of Prince Charles' staff.
Mr Coulson at the time denied any knowledge of Mr Goodman's activities.
"I find it absolutely staggering that Andy Coulson can go to be the communication officer for the Tory party," said Mr Prescott, one of those named by the Guardianas a victim of the alleged activities, told Channel 4 News yesterday. "I hope Mr Cameron will clear him out."
Mr Coulson said in a statement yesterday he had no knowledge of an alleged settlement payments to Gordon Taylor, chief executive officer of the Professional Footballers Association, and repeated he knew nothing of the activities of the reporter and private investigator.
News Corp Chairman and CEO Rupert Murdoch said he wasn't aware of any payments made to settle legal cases in which the company's newspaper reporters may have been involved in criminal activity.
"If that had happened, I would know about it," Mr Murdoch said yesterday in an interview at the Allen & Co media conference in Sun Valley, Idaho.
A Guardianspokeswoman in London said the newspaper stands by its story.
According to the Guardian, the out-of-court settlements secured secrecy about three cases that may have shown evidence of journalists using private investigators who allegedly illegally hacked into the mobile-phone messages of public figures and gained access to confidential personal data, the newspaper said.
The Guardiancited an unnamed person with the London's Metropolitan Police, who said there was evidence that News Group staff used private investigators who hacked into thousands of mobile phones.
Mr Coulson said the story refers to an alleged payment made after he left the newspaper. "The Mulcaire case was investigated thoroughly by the police and by the Press Complaints Commission," he said yesterday in a statement released by the Conservative Party.
"I took full responsibility at the time for what happened on my watch but without my knowledge and resigned."
Mr Cameron wasn't making any comment, the Conservative Party said. In recent weeks, the Conservative leader has made personal integrity an election issue, arguing that Britain's "broken politics" needs cleaning up after a scandal about the expenses claimed by British lawmakers of all parties.
In April, Mr Cameron attacked Gordon Brown after the prime minister was forced to fire a press adviser who was trying to spread rumours about the private lives of Conservative politicians.
The Metropolitan Police last night declined to comment on the Guardianstory, beyond confirming it had investigated the unlawful interception of telephone calls, leading to two convictions.
Agencies