News International chairman James Murdoch has landed himself in a fresh controversy after two of his former employees questioned his testimony to a House of Commons committee, opening another line of inquiry in the messy phone-hacking issue.
Prime Minister David Cameron today said James Murdoch had questions to answer to parliament after the two former employees, Colin Myler (editor of News of the World) and Tom Crone (legal manager) questioned Murdoch's testimony before the Culture, Media and Sport Select Committee on Tuesday.
Labur MP Tom Watson, who has been in the forefront of parliamentary scrutiny into the phone-hacking issue, has referred the discrepancy in Murdoch's statement to the committee and that of Myler and Crone to the Metropolitan police for investigation.
If it is proved that Murdoch misled MPs, he will face legal consequences.
Speaking during a visit in Warwickshire, Cameron said: "Clearly James Murdoch has got questions to answer in Parliament and I'm sure he will do that. And clearly News International has got some big issues to deal with and a mess to clear up, that has to be done by the management of that company."
Committee chairman John Whittingdale said Murdoch had agreed to write to the committee on various points he had been unable to address at the hearing.
He said: "I'm sure if the statement suggests there's conflict between what Colin Myler is saying and what he said, we will ask him to answer that as well."
Murdoch had told the committee that he was not "aware" of an email suggesting the practice went wider than a "rogue" News of the World reporter.
But Myler and Crone said last night said they "did inform" him of the email.
The Metropolitan Police later confirmed that Watson's request for an investigation "was being considered", BBC said.
In a statement issued by News Corporation, Murdoch said: "I stand by my testimony to the select committee."
The testimony in question refers to the April 2008 payment authorised by Murdoch as part of an out-of-court settlement of more than 600,000 pounds to Gordon Taylor, chief executive of the Professional Footballers' Association, over the hacking of his phone.
He had said at the time he did not know the full extent of hacking that may have been going on at the News of the World.
The paper's royal editor Clive Goodman and private investigator Glenn Mulcaire had both been jailed for hacking into phones of the royal household in 2007.
At the committee hearing, Labour's Watson asked Murdoch: "When you signed off the Taylor payment, did you see or were you made aware of the full" email suggesting hacking was more widespread than had been admitted.
To which, Murdoch replied: "No, I was not aware of that at the time....There was every reason to settle the case, given the likelihood of losing the case and given the damages - we had received counsel - that would be levied."
In their statement, Myler and Crone said that just by way of clarification relating to Tuesday's CMS Select Committee hearing, "we would like to point out that James Murdoch's recollection of what he was told when agreeing to settle the Gordon Taylor litigation was mistaken."
"In fact, we did inform him of the 'for Neville' email which had been produced to us by Gordon Taylor's lawyers," they said.
