- Brooks released after 12 hours in custody
- Insiders suggest James Murdoch could now also face questioning
- Crunch BSkyB board meeting in 10 days times
- Spokesman says her appearance in Commons will now be 'very tricky'
- Dowler family lawyer says timing of the arrest 'stinks'
Rebekah Brooks was released on bail at midnight after being arrested over allegations of phone hacking and police corruption.
The flame-haired 43-year-old, a confidante of Tony Blair, Gordon Brown and David Cameron, was until last week the most powerful woman in British newspapers.
Her arrest, when she arrived at a London police station for a prearranged interview, came amid growing pressure on James Murdoch, heir apparent to his father Rupert’s troubled media empire.
Arrested: Rebekah Brooks (pictured with Rupert Murdoch eight days ago) was taken into police custody yesterday over the phone hacking scandal engulfing Mr Murdoch's troubled media empire'
Plenty to think about: Mr Murdoch leaves his house in Central London this morning. The arrest of Mrs Brooks comes amid growing pressure on James Murdoch, heir apparent to his father Rupert's troubled media empire.
PRESSURE MOUNTS ON JAMES MURDOCH AHEAD OF CRUNCH BOARD MEETING
James Murdoch’s position as heir to father Rupert’s News Corp media empire looked increasingly precarious last night following the arrest of Rebekah Brooks, ex-head of the News International publishing arm.
Pressure is mounting on the directors of BSkyB to either support or sack Murdoch junior (pictured), who chairs the pay-TV company part owned by News Corp.
A crunch board meeting on July 28 could decide his future as James is already under fire from the phone hacking scandal and collapse of News Corp’s bid to buy up the 61pc of shares in BSkyB it does not already own.
Last week investment firm Yacktman said it would be ‘thrilled’ if News Corp president Chase Carey took over the conglomerate, in a clear snub to James.
His sister Elisabeth Murdoch could yet land a senior role at News Corp as the family scrambles to preserve Rupert Murdoch’s dream of a media dynasty. She is set to join the board in October after News Corp bought her TV company Shine.
News Corp shares have shed more than £1.3bn of their value in the past ten days on fears the fallout from the phone hacking scandal
will infect other parts of the Murdoch organisation.
The group has announced a £3bn share buy-back in an effort to assuage worried investors and prop up the share price.
Meanwhile, London-listed BSkyB stock has fallen from a high of 850p to just 709p on Friday.
Terry Smith, head of broker Tullett Prebon and chief executive of Fundsmith, made a scathing attack on News Corp and urged Rupert Murdoch to end his reign as head of the company.
Labelling News Corp as the ‘Temple of Doom’, Smith said Murdoch was no longer suitable to run the beleaguered media giant.
It now seems unlikely that Mrs Brooks, editor of the tabloid when murdered schoolgirl Milly Dowler’s phone messages are alleged to have been hacked, will be able to give evidence to the Parliamentary select committee for Culture, Media and Sport tomorrow.
Instead James Murdoch, chairman of News Corporation, will be in the firing line over ‘hush money’ payments he sanctioned to alleged victims of phone hacking by the News of the World. The deals included gagging clauses which appear to have prevented victims discussing potential criminal activity.
There is speculation, dismissed by insiders at the firm, that James could face police questioning.
News International chief executive Mrs Brooks – regarded by Rupert Murdoch as a ‘fifth daughter’ – announced her departure from his empire on Friday morning.
She insists she had no idea at that stage that she was about to be arrested. Her spokesman said her arrest would make her planned appearance alongside Rupert and James Murdoch at the Commons tomorrow ‘pretty tricky’.
He added that she had been offering to speak to police since January, and so was ‘very surprised’ to learn she was being arrested.
‘Rebekah was informed about a pre-arranged interview with the police on Friday. She was arrested upon arrival at the police station today.
‘As late as last week the police maintained they did not need to speak to her. However following her resignation and the announcement that she would attend the select committee meeting on Tuesday, the police changed their course of action and told Rebekah they did want to speak to her.
‘The arrest puts her in a difficult position in terms of her scheduled appearance at the meeting on Tuesday. Rebekah’s lawyers will be seeking guidance.’
Mark Lewis, lawyer for the Dowler family, said the timing of the arrest ‘stinks’. He declared: ‘To be arrested two days before a committee at which she was going to be at one time the only person from News Corp giving evidence looks deliberate.’
Liberal Democrat MP Adrian Sanders, a member of the committee due to question Mrs Brooks and the Murdochs tomorrow, said: ‘A lot of people are going to think this is very, very odd.
‘If this is designed to take the spotlight off the police at the same time as giving a shield to Rebekah Brooks, that’s a very serious matter indeed.
Putting it right: News International used full page adverts in national newspapers to explain what it plans to do in response to the phone hacking allegations'
‘We don’t know how much this is going to impede our questioning until we’ve been able to sit down and talk it through with the Parliamentary counsel.’
Labour justice spokesman Chris Bryant, an alleged phone hacking victim, said: ‘I think this is rather odd timing, to happen on a Sunday and just two days before her appearance.
‘Maybe the police are trying to protect evidence, but plenty of people will be saying, “This is an opportunity for her to get out of saying things to the culture committee”.’
JUDE LAW HACKING COULD LEAD TO U.S. COURT
In a story published on September 7, 2003, a News of the World reporter watched as Jude Law, then married to Sadie Frost, arrived at New York's JFK airport'
Jude Law claims he was a victim of hacking by the News of the World while in New York, meaning News International could be prosecuted in the United States.
The actor’s mobile phone and that of his assistant, Ben Jackson, were allegedly targeted in what is reported to be the first specific example of a case of hacking by the newspaper on American soil.
As their phones were operating on U.S. networks, American law would apply regardless of where the alleged hacker was based. It could leave News International open to claims that it broke U.S. federal laws and also pave the way for costly lawsuits.
In a story published on September 7, 2003, a News of the World reporter watched as Law, then married to Sadie Frost, arrived at New York’s JFK airport.
The newspaper told how Law sent Mr Jackson ahead to check for waiting photographers, with instructions to ring him if it was safe to emerge. Law waited 20 minutes before Mr Jackson rang him on his mobile ‘to confirm the coast was clear’.
The story also gave details of Law’s arrival at his hotel that evening, his room number and how much he spent on room service.
The new claim is separate from legal action Law has brought against the News of the World’s stablemate The Sun, alleging that the paper hacked into his voicemail.
However News International has vehemently denied the claims against Britain's best-selling daily newspaper.
In a statement it said: ‘We believe this is an attempt to draw The Sun into the phone-hacking issue.
'The allegations made in this claim have been carefully investigated by our lawyers and the evidence shows that they have no foundation whatsoever.
'In particular, the claimant's solicitors have relied on a reference in documentation that they should be well aware has nothing to do with a case against The Sun.
'Also, another article complained of merely reiterated information which was already in the public domain. The claim will be defended vigorously.'
No comments:
Post a Comment