Watergate?
Posted: Sat Jul 16, 2011 8:08 am
I remember reading something a couple of weeks ago suggesting that the phone hacking scandal was the UK's Watergate. My initial reaction was that this was bollocks.
Now I am not too sure.
In 2003, Rebekah Brooks admitted in front of a Parliamentary Committee that the NOTW had paid policemen. It has emerged recently that there a number of emails out there in which Coulson authorised payments to police.
First we have Andy Hayman who was in charge of the original phone hacking investigation back in 2006/2007. The only outcome was a "rogue reporter" and a private investigator working for the NOTW were sent down.
Hayman resigned from the Service on 4 December 2007, following allegations about expense claims and alleged improper conduct with a female member of the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) and a female Sergeant.
Two months later, he started working for the Murdoch empire and has contributed to The Times, owned by NI, and there has "written in defence of the police investigation and maintained there were 'perhaps a handful' of hacking victims." Hayman appeared before the Home Affairs Select Committee on 12 July 2011 when he confirmed that he had received hospitality from people he was investigating in relation to a criminal offence, although he regarded this as normal and operational matters were not discussed!!!
Former Met Commissioner John Stevens became a NOW columnist when he retired, getting a huge salary for the role.
John Yates who was ferociously persistent in his work on the cash for peerage investigation under the Labour government, refused to reopen the hacking enquiry even though the Guardian indicated that at least 3000 people had been hacked by Glenn Mulcaire and it has subsequently transpired that Yates team was sitting on 11,000 pages of Glenn Mulcaire's notes including 4,000 people's personal details.
Sir Paul Stevenson, the Metropolitan Commission had a meeting with the Guardian editor in 2009 to tell him that the phone hacking coverage was incorrect and exaggerated. What Stevenson didnt mention was that two months previously he had appointed Neil Wallis, the ex deputy editor of NOTW while Coulson was editor, on a ?1,000 per day as a strategic communications advisor. Wallis was also working for Yates at the time Yates decided not to reopen the investigation.
Cameron published details yesterday of meetings he had had with senior newspaper executives and editors since becoming prime minister. He had met senior executives of the Murdoch empire about 20 times. This compares with the Daily Mail, 3 times and the Guardian, once.
It's going to get a bit uncomfortable, I think when politicians and police start getting called and interviewed under oath as part of the judicial inquiry.
Cheers
D
Now I am not too sure.
In 2003, Rebekah Brooks admitted in front of a Parliamentary Committee that the NOTW had paid policemen. It has emerged recently that there a number of emails out there in which Coulson authorised payments to police.
First we have Andy Hayman who was in charge of the original phone hacking investigation back in 2006/2007. The only outcome was a "rogue reporter" and a private investigator working for the NOTW were sent down.
Hayman resigned from the Service on 4 December 2007, following allegations about expense claims and alleged improper conduct with a female member of the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) and a female Sergeant.
Two months later, he started working for the Murdoch empire and has contributed to The Times, owned by NI, and there has "written in defence of the police investigation and maintained there were 'perhaps a handful' of hacking victims." Hayman appeared before the Home Affairs Select Committee on 12 July 2011 when he confirmed that he had received hospitality from people he was investigating in relation to a criminal offence, although he regarded this as normal and operational matters were not discussed!!!
Former Met Commissioner John Stevens became a NOW columnist when he retired, getting a huge salary for the role.
John Yates who was ferociously persistent in his work on the cash for peerage investigation under the Labour government, refused to reopen the hacking enquiry even though the Guardian indicated that at least 3000 people had been hacked by Glenn Mulcaire and it has subsequently transpired that Yates team was sitting on 11,000 pages of Glenn Mulcaire's notes including 4,000 people's personal details.
Sir Paul Stevenson, the Metropolitan Commission had a meeting with the Guardian editor in 2009 to tell him that the phone hacking coverage was incorrect and exaggerated. What Stevenson didnt mention was that two months previously he had appointed Neil Wallis, the ex deputy editor of NOTW while Coulson was editor, on a ?1,000 per day as a strategic communications advisor. Wallis was also working for Yates at the time Yates decided not to reopen the investigation.
Cameron published details yesterday of meetings he had had with senior newspaper executives and editors since becoming prime minister. He had met senior executives of the Murdoch empire about 20 times. This compares with the Daily Mail, 3 times and the Guardian, once.
It's going to get a bit uncomfortable, I think when politicians and police start getting called and interviewed under oath as part of the judicial inquiry.
Cheers
D