Murdochs will face MPs over hacking

News International chief executive Rebekah Brooks and her boss Rupert Murdoch will face a committee of MPs
12 April 2012

Media mogul Rupert Murdoch and his son have bowed to pressure from MPs and agreed to appear before the Commons committee investigating the News of the World phone-hacking scandal.

James Murdoch wrote to the Commons Culture, Media and Sport Committee to confirm they would both give evidence next Tuesday, having previously said they were unavailable to attend.

Their refusal had prompted the committee to issue summonses - served by the House of Commons Deputy Serjeant at Arms - ordering them to appear. The Leader of the House, Sir George Young, confirmed that - in theory at least - they could be fined or even imprisoned if they failed to turn up.

Earlier, former News of the World deputy editor Neil Wallis, 60, became the latest senior figure at the now-defunct tabloid to be arrested by police on the Operation Weeting investigation into phone hacking. He was questioned for several hours at a London police station after being detained in a dawn raid on his home.

Metropolitan Police Commissioner Sir Paul Stephenson is now expected to give evidence to the Commons Home Affairs Committee - which is looking at the police investigation into phone-hacking - on the same day as the Murdochs appear before the Culture, Media and Sport Committee.

The Murdochs' decision to accede to the MPs' demands came little over 24 hours after they dropped their takeover bid for BSkyB in the face of overwhelming opposition from Parliament.

The News Corp chairman and chief executive and his son, who is the organisation's deputy chief operating officer, will appear alongside Rebekah Brooks, the chief executive of News International, which published the NoW.

However, in his letter to the committee, James Murdoch said: "We have been advised that, in the light of the fact that there are to be multiple reviews of the issues, this does carry the risk of prejudicing other judicial proceedings and in particular the ongoing police investigation and any potential subsequent prosecutions.

"I would therefore respectfully ask you to take the utmost care in ensuring that the committee hearing does not run any risk of prejudicing that investigation and subsequent prosecutions."

The announcement that they would now be appearing was welcomed by the committee chairman, Conservative MP John Whittingdale, who said he hoped they would take the opportunity to apologise for what had happened.

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