Good morning. Welcome to the Guardian's continued live coverage of the News of the World phone hacking scandal.

• David Cameron's former director of communications Andy Coulson has been told by police that he will be arrested this morning over suspicions that he knew about, or had direct involvement in, the hacking of mobile phones during his editorship of the News of the World. The Guardian understands that a second arrest is also to be made in the next few days of a former senior journalist at the paper. The Guardian knows the identity of the second suspect but is withholding the name to avoid prejudicing the police investigation.

• The prime minister will hold a press conference at 9.30am at which he will be under pressure over the government's handling of the phone hacking scandal and the BSkyB takeover deal, his hiring of Andy Coulson, who resigned in January, his friendship with Rebekah Brooks and his close links with the Murdochs.

Ed Miliband is giving a speech at Reuters.

He says it "has been a tumultuous week for British journalism with allegations that have shocked the British public's sense of decency".

Miliband has just finished speaking. Here are some key quotes.

On politicians' relationship with the press:

For too long, political leaders have been too concerned about what people in the press would think and too fearful of speaking out about these issues. If one section of the media is allowed to grow so powerful that it becomes insulated from political criticism and scrutiny of its behaviour, the proper system of checks and balances breaks down and abuses of power are likely to follow. We must all bear responsibility for that. My party has not been immune from it. Nor has the current government and prime minister. All of this is difficult because of his personal relationships and the powerful forces here.

On David Cameron's relationship with Andy Coulson:

Putting it right for the prime minister means starting by the appalling error of judgement he made in hiring Andy Coulson. Apologising for bringing him in to the centre of the government machine. Coming clean about what conversations he had with Andy Coulson before and after his appointment about phone-hacking.

On the need for a judge-led inquiry:

We need a judge-led inquiry to shine a light on the culture and practices which need to change. This should be established immediately with terms of reference agreed before the summer. The inquiry should cover the culture and unlawful practices of some parts of the newspaper industry, the relationship between the police and media, and the nature of regulation.

On the BSkyB deal:

Most immediately, the decision on BskyB has significant implications for media ownership in Britain. The public must have confidence that the right decisions are being made.

That is why we have consistently said there should be a reference to the Competition Commission, the proper regulatory body. The government has chosen a different path which relies on assurances from executives at News Corporation. Given the doubts hanging over the assurances about phone hacking by News international executives, I cannot see, and the public will not understand, how this can provide the fair dealing that is necessary.

On the culpability of News International executives:

I welcome James Murdoch's admission of serious errors. But closing the News of the World, possibly to re-open as the Sunday Sun, is not the answer. Instead those who were in charge must take responsibility for what happened.

On Media regulation and the Press Complaints Commission:

The PCC was established to be a watchdog. But it has been exposed as a toothless poodle.

Wherever blame lies for this, the PCC cannot restore trust in self-regulation. It is time to put the PCC out of its misery. We need a new watchdog. There needs to be fundamental change. My instincts continue to be that a form of self-regulation would be the best way forward. That is a debate we should have. But it would need to be very different to work.

Let me make some initial suggestions, drawing on many of the debates about the inadequacies of the system. A new body should have: far greater independence of its Board members from those it regulates; proper investigative powers; and an ability to enforce corrections.

_

Andy Coulson has arrived at West End Central Police Station, on Saville Row, to answer questions that he knew about, or had direct involvement in, phone hacking, according to the Times (paywall).

It should be noted that no-one else has seen Coulson arrive and it won't surprise you that there are many people waiting outside for a glimpse of him.

On his Guardian blog, Roy Greenslade has rounded up what today's papers say about the phone hacking scandal and the decision to close the News of the World. Here's his summary of the editorials and comment pieces:

John Lloyd in the FT:



The Decline of the English Titillator has been swift, unsentimental and – even with all the cancers its newsroom acquired while under the Murdoch tutelage – cruel.

Stephen Glover in The Independent was in no doubt that News International's chief executive Rebekah Brooks will have to go and argued that "James and even Rupert Murdoch may not be safe." He believes the closure is "a desperate ploy by a dysfunctional company."

The Indy's editorial also castigated the management team that remains in place. It contended: "The life of a notorious newspaper might have been extinguished yesterday, but the stench of cover-up and criminality hangs as thick as ever in the Murdoch court."

Andrew Gilligan in the Daily Telegraph reminded us that some of the "morally dubious" methods used so by the NoW do have their place in journalism - but only for good reasons:

We sometimes pay for information. We sometimes use subterfuge. But the difference is that unlike the News of the World, where hacking seems to have been almost a reflex, most newspapers employ subterfuge, payment and the like rarely, carefully and on stories of real public interest. In a country as secretive as Britain, there is sometimes no other way to obtain information of vital public importance.

In The Times (paywall), William Rees-Mogg wrote:



The first rule of newspaper ethics, as with the ethics of political life, is not to lose touch with the moral codes of the audience: common sense, goodwill, help to neighbours, decent conduct in general.

He continued:

In financial terms, the News of the World was of far less importance to the future of the [News Corp] group than BSkyB. The NoW was a rather elderly cash cow for the business; the BSkyB purchase could greatly strengthen the ability of the Murdoch business to finance further ventures on a global scale in the face of determined competition. The NoW was something above a financial indulgence but it would have become an indulgence too far to allow the failings of judgment in one newspaper to block far more promising developments.



The Times's leader (paywall) was headlined: "Unpopular journalism: After a colourful, prize-winning career the News of the World lost its bearings and the faith of its readers."

Like Lloyd in the FT, it set off by reminding us of the famous introduction to George Orwell's essay, Decline of the English Murder, which linked the NoW to the image of a family enjoying a Sunday roast dinner.

The last sentence was of particular interest, because it followed what I take to be News Int's propagandistic policy line:

A handful of people have trampled upon others in grief and despair. They have shamed themselves, destroyed a newspaper and damaged trust in the free press. It will be a long time before that trust is regained.



This is a sad echo of the original "rogue reporter" defence. This time around it is aimed at blaming everything on departed staff and sealing off criticism of both Brooks and James Murdoch.

The Daily Mail was having none of that. Its editorial, Hubris and a threat to press freedom finished with this sentence:

Our sympathies are with the NoW's innocent sub-editors and printers who can feel with some justification that they have been sacrificed in the ultimately unsustainable attempt to save the job of the company's chief executive.

The Daily Mirror concentrated its fire on the implications of the closure on Murdoch's desire to acquire total ownership of BSkyB.

After showing sympathy for the "foot soldiers lined up in front of a corporate firing squad... for a series of scandals from an era before many started working on the title" it said:

Few believe the decision was made out of any corporate moral compunction. Rather it was a straightforward business decision and 'a classic Murdoch sleight of hand'.

The shares of Trinity Mirror and the Daily Mail & General Trust have risen this morning - 10% and 3% respectively - on speculation they will benefit from the News of the World's closure, the Press Association reports. BSkyB dipped 4p to 810p.

David Cameron is due to begin his press conference any moment.

Our crime correspondent Sandra Laville says Andy Coulson is not at West End Central police station yet (The Times is reporting that he is currently being questioned).

Another colleague, Shiv Malk, has obtained confirmation that David Cameron's former director of communications is not at any central London police station.

The Press Association says Coulson's appointment with detectives is due for later today.

Still waiting for the prime minister to arrive at the podium for his press conference at Downing Street.

The prime minister is speaking.

The whole country has been shocked by the revelations of the phone hacking scandal. I cannot think what was going through the mind of the people who did this.

The hacking of Milly Dowler's phone was "despicable".

But this is not just about the journalists at one paper.

Firstly, we need action to get to the bottom of what has happened, says Cameron. The original police investigation was "inadequate". The police are now being investigated with "full independent insight".

But people want to know how this happened. A judge needs to be in charge of an independent inquiry to find out:

1. why the original police investigation failed.

2. what was going on at the NoW

3. what was going on at other papers.

Witnesses will be questioned under oath and "no stone will be left unturned".

A second inquiry, to commence this summer, should be undertaken by a panel of experts to look at the "culture, ethics and practices of the British press".

"The Press Complaints Commission has failed...it lacks public confidence," says Cameron.

The replacement body should be independent of the press and politicians so it is free to hold politicians to account.

The future of press regulation would be better approached on a cross-party basis.

It is no good pointing the finger at this individual journalist or that individual newspaper.

Politicians "including me" have not adequately "gripped" this matter, says Cameron. He refers to the last government's failure to act but says the opposition, then the Conservatives, did not do enough either.

Party leaders were so keen to win the support of papers we turned a blind eye to the need to sort this.

"Politicians and press have spent time courting" rather than confronting the issues, says Cameron.

It is on my watch that the music has stopped, says the prime minister.

Cameron says he decided to give Coulson a second chance.



The decision to hire him was mine and mine alone and I take full responsibility for it.

He says it has been reported that Rebekah Brooks offered her resignation over this "and I would have taken it".

_

Questions now. Chris Ship from ITV News asks the prime minister to apologise for the appointment of Coulson.

No apology is forthcoming.

"The second chance didn't work," says Cameron. It's not meaningful to go over it. People will judge whether they think it's right to give someone a second chance.

The key thing is it's right to judge an individual by the work they did for me.

Nick Robinson, from BBC News, says the PM's judgement is at issue. Why did you believe a man who had resigned from the NoW over phone hacking?

Cameron said no-one gave him "specific information" about Coulson. This is a reference to the comments of the Telegraph's Peter Oborne and Guardian editor Alan Rusbridger who said Cameron was warned about Coulson's links to a private detective accused of murder.

The PM takes a swipe at Alistair Campbell referring to "dodgy dossiers" by past directors of communications.

Adam Boulton, from Sky News, asks Cameron whether closing the NoW was the right decision, about his relationship with the press, and whether BSkyB executives pass the fit and proper persons test.

Cameron says it is not for him to say whether the paper should have been closed.

It is natural for the PM to speak to the press and cultivate relationships, says Cameron, but there was a "fundamental failure" to tackle media regulation.

"It is not appropriate for the prime minister to say 'I'd quite like that person to own a newspaper but not that person'," says Cameron on the fit and proper person test. There are organisations qualified and equipped to make those decisions.

Times reporter Roland Watson asks Cameron what specific questions he asked of Coulson.

The prime minister rejects the opportunity to go into detail.

The prime minister said he sought "specific" and "general" assurances. (The PM said earlier he carried out background checks).

Coulson told him he didn't know the hacking had taken place. Cameron says there is still a police investigation ongoing, adding:



"I certainly don't know who at News International knew what about what."

The Guardian's political editor, Patrick Wintour, asks if the PM is saying he had no warning that Coulson had links with a private detective accused of murder (The Telegraph's Peter Oborne and Guardian editor Alan Rusbridger both said he was warned).

I wasn't given any specific information about Andy Coulson ...I don't recall being given any information.

The PM says he is checking and will check whether any of his staff were warned.

Michael Crick from Newsnight asks if Cameron hauled Coulson into his office when the Guardian first broke the phone hacking story in 2009.

I did have conversations with him throughout but it didn't lead me to change my perception that he did not know about phone hacking, says Cameron

Cameron is asked whether he has been in contact with Coulson and if he is friends with him.

"He became a friend and is a friend". The prime minister says he has has been in contact with Coulson but "not in recent weeks".

A Bloomberg reporter asks whether James Murdoch should be questioned over his statement that he approved payments that he shouldn't have and what would it would take for Murdoch to be deemed not to be a fit and proper person.

Whether he is a fit and proper person is not a question for the PM, says Cameron.

The police must feel they can go where they need....and question everyone to get to the bottom of this.

Cameron concludes his speeach

BSkyB shares went into freefall as Cameron was speaking... down 15.5p at 796.5p, or 1.9%, my colleague Julia Kollewe tells me.

BSkyB shares continue to fall. Now down 38.5p at 772.5p - a fall of 4.8%, writes Julia Kollwe, from the Guardian's city desk.

Panmure Gordon analyst Alex DeGroote said this morning:



By exiting the NoW, News International attempts to draw a line in the sand, at least in terms of likely regulatory interference in the NewsCorp/BSkyB deal. However, the probability of a successful deal is now much reduced. Previously, we would have estimated a 90% plus chance of a deal getting approval, and completing in the near term. Now the probability can be no higher than 50%, and the time-line is likely to be drawn out.

Here's a quick summary of some of the key points from Cameron's speech:

• The prime minister announced two inquiries. The first will be led by a judge and will investigate why the why the original police investigation failed and what was was going on at the NoW and other papers. The judge will be able to call witnesses on oath. A second inquiry, to commence this summer, should be undertaken by a panel of experts to look at the "culture, ethics and practices of the British press".

• He refused to apologise for the appointment of Coulson and said he was not warned about Coulson's links with a private investigator accused of murder before his appointment, or at least he did not remember being warned.

• Cameron said he would have accepted Rebekah Brooks' resignation if offered it.

• He said the Press Complaints Commission had failed and should be replaced by a new body, independent of the press and politicians.

• Cameron insisted that the culture secretary, Jeremy Hunt, had to follow legal guidelines in assessing the BSkyB deal.

• In response to a question about James Murdoch's admission that he approved payments that were wrong, the prime minister said police should question anyone "no matter how high or low".

_

My colleague Peter Walker, at West End Central police station, tells me a very friendly chief inspector Osborn has just been chatting to the gathered journalists on the steps of the station and told them Coulson is not inside, nor does he know when, or even if, he will appear.

BREAKING: Andy Coulson has been arrested, it has been confirmed.

Here is the full statement regarding the arrest of Andy Coulson:

The MPS [Metropolitan police service] has this morning [8 July 2011] arrested a member of the public in connection with allegations of corruption and phone hacking. At 10.30am officers from the MPS' Operation Weeting together with officers from Op Elveden arrested a man on suspicion of conspiring to intercept communications, contrary to Section1(1) Criminal Law Act 1977 and on suspicion of corruption allegations contrary to Section 1 of the Prevention of Corruption Act 1906. The man, aged 43yrs, was arrested by appointment at a South London police station. He is currently in custody. The Operation Weeting team is conducting the new investigation into phone hacking. Operation Elveden is the investigation into allegations of inappropriate payments to police. This investigation is being supervised by the IPCC. It would be inappropriate to discuss any further details regarding these cases at this time.

The culture secretary, Jeremy Hunt, has made a statement confirming what everyone anticipated - that the decision on the BSkyB deal will be delayed because of the volume of submissions received relating to it. As has been noted previously, it saves him having to give it the green light, assuming that is the decision he will take, in the midst of a media storm surrounding News Corporation. Hunt said:

The consultation on undertakings in lieu offered by News Corporation in relation to their proposed merger with BSkyB closes at midday today. The secretary of state has always been clear that he will take as long as is needed to reach a decision. The secretary of state will consider carefully all the responses submitted and take advice from Ofcom and the Office of Fair Trading before reaching his decision. Given the volume of responses, we anticipate that this will take some time. He will consider all relevant factors including whether the announcement regarding the News of the World's closure has any impact on the question of media plurality.

The Guardian has video of James Murdoch defending Rebekah Brooks' "very good" ethics. Comments below the line please!

_

The Guardian's international correspondents have been looking at the overseas reaction to the closure of the News of the World.

Helen Pidd in Berlin says German papers largely focus on the political implications:

The News of the World scandal makes the front page of four German newspapers this morning. Even the three-million selling tabloid Bild makes a little space on page one alongside its topless model. "Englands größte Sonntags-Zeitung wird eingestellt" runs the headline, which translates as "England's biggest Sunday newspaper is being shut down". The Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, Germany's paper of record, interprets the "Abhörskandal" (bugging scandal) as a problem for David Cameron. The centre-left Süddeutsche Zeitung says the long-running saga has now become "politically dangerous". The fall-out could "expose the dishonest and corrupt alliance" between "many British politicians and parts of the British media", thinks Stefan Kornelius. Die Welt, a Conservative daily, runs a comment piece saying that it is not enough just for the NoW to be closed down. Under the headline "Murdoch-Gate", Ulrich Clauss says a proper inquiry is imperative: "This is not simply about the crimes of individuals. It's about the reputation of a political operation where the boundaries between money, state and government threaten to become blurred. The common good, especially the protection of citizens against the excessive pursuit of profit from private companies, is on the agenda."

Giles Tremlett, in Madrid, writes:

The News of the World's closure made it onto the front page of Spain's major national dailies this morning. El País's front page photograph featured Rupert Murdoch and his wife in Idaho above a piece about his attempts to kill off the scandal by sacrificing the NoW. La Vanguardia remarked on the closure of "the biggest selling Sunday newspaper in English" and, in an inside piece headlined "Blood and reptiles in Fleet Street", explained that Britain had "the toughest and most merciless news market in the world".



John Hooper in Rome, writes:

In Italy, where the power of media barons has a special resonance, the closure of the News of the World was front page news in all the main dailies. Corriere della Sera carried a commentary by the author and journalist Beppe Servergnini, a former London correspondent, in which he stressed the enduring influence and popularity of the tabloid press in Britain. The end of the NoW, he wrote "does not represent the end of an era. It merely means that someone went too far."

Roy Greenslade has done a round up of the reports in the US press.

3.04pm update: Angelique Chrisafis in Paris:



In France, Le Monde ran a front-page editorial on hackgate, deeming News Corp a "powerful and talented multinational" which weighs on the politics of several countries. It said the problem was the "terrible contradiction" between what the "trash weekly" News of the World practised and what News Corp preaches. The paper said Murdoch publications peddled a "surprising cocktail" of "absolute freemarket economics and the absolute promotion of the most reactionary family values" — the mouth-piece of "conservatism in all its forms". The affair had undermined the credibility of a general editorial line which claimed to preach "moral lessons to the whole world". The paper said the NoW had been shut so the "infection" wouldn't spread, but the closure left News International weakened and could exacerbate financial pressures on the Times.

Under the headline "Very bad News of the World", the daily Libération said "the credibility of Murdoch's whole British press group, The Times, the Sunday Times, The Sun," was at stake.

A group of Times journalists are planning to try to get recognition for the National Union of Journalists (NUJ) at their workplace in the wake of the sudden axing of the News of the World, the Guardian has learned. The NUJ has long been denied recognition at News International titles where journalists are instead directed to join the News International Staff Association (Nisa).

On Comment is Free, Donnacha DeLong, the NUJ president, argues that the union could have saved the News of the World.

The former Times editor, Simon Jenkins, writes on Comment is Free that the News of the World may have made Rupert Murdoch money but it proved to be more trouble than it was worth:

Since the recent revelations of phone hacking the same British establishment has turned on Murdoch and his empire with a gleeful and often hysterical vengeance. One might think that no other media group ever intruded or transgressed any press code of ethics. But Murdoch's response has been drastic. He is closing down the News of the World for good, trying like Lady Macbeth to eradicate the "damned spot" that seems to sully all his current ambition. The game on which he embarked 42 years ago may have made him piles of money, but it has proved more trouble than it is worth. The loss of any newspaper is sad for any who value press diversity. But the "news of the screws" will surely not be missed. Under the Carrs [its ancestral owners] it had a careless radicalism, usually taking the form of not minding whom its intrusions on private life offended. Today its contact with the world of public debate, with politics or economics, has become minimal. It seemed to rely on Max Clifford and others to feed it material, including eavesdroppers, and it feasted as much on the misfortunes of the unknown – vicars and minor actors – as on celebrities. It has been near impossible to find anything of substance in its total preoccupation with sex.

Here's the Guardian's story on David Cameron's press conference this morning.

Here's a summary of the day's key developments so far:

• The former News of the World editor, Andy Coulson, has been arrested in connection with allegations of corruption and phone-hacking. The Metropolitan police said David Cameron's former director of communications was arrested after attending an appointment at a South London police station.

• David Cameron said he took full responsibility for the appointment of Coulson but did not apologise for it as he came under pressure to admit that he had erred. He said he was not warned about Coulson's links with a private investigator accused of murder before his appointment, as has been claimed, or at least that he did not remember being warned. The prime minister announced two inquiries. The first will be led by a judge and will investigate why the original police investigation failed and what was going on at the NoW and other papers. The second, by a panel of experts, will look at the "culture, ethics and practices of the British press". In response to a question about James Murdoch's admission that he approved payments that were wrong, the prime minister said police should question anyone "no matter how high or low". He said the Press Complaints Commission had failed and should be replaced by a new body, independent of the press and politicians

• The Labour leader, Ed Miliband, said the prime minister should apologise for the error of judgement in hiring Coulson. He called for a judge-led inquiry into the scandal to be established "immediately". Miliband described the PCC as a "toothless poodle" but said his instincts were that it should be replaced by another self-regulation body. The leader of the opposition said closing the News of the World was not enough: "Instead those who were in charge must take responsibility for what happened."

Former News of the World royal correspondent Clive Goodman has been arrested in connection with alleged payments to Metropolitan police.

This is Adam Gabbatt taking over from Haroon, by the way.

Shiv Malik reports that Andy Coulson is being held at Lewisham police station in south London.

We understand this from an officer who checked the Met police custody database. This would fit with the Met police's own statement released earlier this morning. However the police do not confirm an individual's place of custody to members of the press and so we can not get full confirmation of this as of yet. Lewisham custody officers have also refused to confirm whether they are holding Coulson at their station.

Shiv has also spotted this tweet from @rosettastone57 at 10.37am:

@rosettastone57 #NOTW just seen Coulson walking towards Lewisham police station

Clive Goodman is being held at a south London police station – but not the Lewisham station where Andy Coulson is being held, the Guardian understands.

Goodman was arrested at 6.11am this morning at his home in Surrey.

A Met police spokeswoman said: "A 53-year-old man was arrested at a residential address in Surrey, where there is a search ongoing. He was arrested as part of Operation Elveden, under suspicion of corruption allegations which contravene Section 1 of the Prevention of Corruption Act 1906."

She added:

He is being held at a separate police station from the 43-year-old man who was arrested this morning.

Owen Bowcott has been looking into claims from the media lawyer Mark Stephens that the News of the World closure might enable a liquidator to shred a backlog of potentially incriminating emails and documents.

"Why would the liquidator want to keep [the records]?" Stephens told the news service Reuters. "Minimizing liability is the liquidator's job." But the London insolvency practitioner Rodney Hylton-Potts dismissed the idea as legally implausible. "In a liquidation, a liquidator takes over all the books and records but that does not affect the obligations of a liquidator or a director to bear in mind any criminal inquiry," he said. "The leading case in this is Enron, where the accountants, Arthur Anderson, sent around an email saying that they should shred things. They were severely criticised for that and it finished the [accountancy] firm. "We know there are police inquiries going on into the News of the World and anybody who removed records now would be personally liable. It would be perverting the course of justice and a crime. I don't think liquidation will make any difference [to the firms records]. "Indeed, the News of the World policy since January has been to cooperate with the police and in a solvent liquidation [like the NoW], the liquidator has a duty to follow the company's policy." Other legal sources have pointed out that the News of the World is not a legal entity. Liquidating its publisher, News Group Newspapers, would mean closing down The Sun as well. 2.54pm update:Kevin Hawthorn, a solicitor and insolvency expert at the law firm Beachcroft also suggested no liquidator would seek to obstruct a police inquiry. "A liquidator is an independent professional who has a governing body to report to," he said. "Any suggestion that a liquidator would destroy records to prevent incrimination is a bit far fetched. If there's a police inquiry then I don't think any liquidator would stand in their way."

The BBC's Robert Peston tweets:

@Peston EXCLUSIVE: Ofcom to signal that a probe into whether News Corp a fit-and-proper owner of BSkyB is highly likely. See my blog soon

Hello, this is Haroon, taking over from Adam again. Robert Peston has now blogged on Ofcom's monitoring of News Corporation and the BSkyB deal. He writes:



It [Ofcom] is likely to make a statement later today, I am told, which will make it clear that it regards evidence that the News of the World's newsroom was out of control for many years as relevant to a judgement on whether News Corporation would be a fit-and-proper owner of British Sky Broadcasting. ... Ofcom will want to know how it was that the News of the World was able to engage in unacceptable journalistic practices for many years, who in theory had management responsibility for what went on there, and who knew what and when about all of this. I would expect Ofcom to liaise with the police on securing information that would allow it to make this judgement. That said, I do not expect Ofcom to launch an enquiry into this "fit-and-proper" question immediately. It will want to allow the police to continue their investigation for a while longer, before making its own assessment. Ofcom's probable intervention will therefore erect a very big obstacle in the way of News Corp's planned bid of almost £10bn for the 61% of BSkyB it doesn't already own - because the board of BSkyB will be not able to judge whether News Corp would be allowed by Ofcom to complete the takeover.

Janine Gibson, the editor of guardian.co.uk and former media editor, has written on Comment is Free about how media regulation might look now that the PCC seems to be history. She writes that the options are self-regulation, external regulation...or something "more sophisticated".

Back on the issue of the BSkyB deal, the Guardian's political editor, Patrick Wintour, tells me he understands Jeremy Hunt will ask Ofcom for a written statement on the question of whether News Corp is a fit-and-proper owner of BSkyB.

If it is found that it is not fit and proper not only would News Corp not be able to take over all of BSkyB but would have to disinvest the shares it already has. It is not clear when this will happen and is a process that could take some time.

Ed Miliband, in Doncaster, has been responding on BBC News, to David Cameron's speech. He says there were two problems with it.

The first was that Cameron "seems determined to plough on regardless" with the BSkyB deal rather than referring it to the Competition Commission.

And the second was:

On the issue of Andy Coulson, he cannot bring himself to apologise for this terrible error of judgement.

The National Union of Journalists has been inundated with calls from members of staff from all three News International titles over the last 24 hours inquiring about membership and their rights, a spokesman claimed. An official said:

The phone has been off the hook. People have been hesitant because there is a culture of fear which dates back to the Wapping dispute. But they are coming forward now.

NUJ officials will be distributing leaflets outside the building in Wapping today. The union is planning an emergency meeting for members and non members to discuss the closure of the News of the World and what it means for the staff there and the rest of the titles.

Up to 35 of the Sun's subs walked out of their newspaper on Thursday night in support of their News of the World colleagues - an unusually militant move by a group of experienced hands who are often credited with defining the Sun's style with punchy puns and headlines.

A number of charities have rejected the chance to advertise for free in the final edition of the News of the World on Sunday, Celina Ribeiro writes on civilsociety.co.uk.

She says that RNLI, RSPCA, The Brooke, Care International, Thames Reach, Action Aid, WaterAid, Salvation Army, VSO, RSPCA, Oxfam and Barnardo's have all rejected the offer.

For legal-related reasons any comments you wish to make should now be made here.

This is to avoid a contempt of court in relation to any of the arrests made in connection with phone-hacking.

Nick Davies has news of a significant development in the police investigation into phone hacking:

Police are investigating evidence that a News International executive may have deleted millions of emails from an internal archive, in an apparent attempt to obstruct Scotland Yard's inquiry into the phone-hacking scandal. The archive is believed to have reached back to January 2005 revealing daily contact between News of the World editors, reporters and outsiders, including private investigators. The messages are potentially highly valuable both for the police and for the numerous public figures who are suing News International. According to legal sources close to the police inquiry, a senior executive is believed to have deleted 'massive quantities' of the archive on two separate occasions, leaving only a small fraction to be disclosed. One of the alleged deletions is said to have been made at the end of January this year, just as Scotland Yard was launching Operation Weeting, its new inquiry into the affair.

BBC Radio Five Live is reporting that the offices of the Daily Star have been raided by police.

We have no confirmation of this at present.

Police have been asked by prosecutors to consider specific claims of phone hacking in Scotland, our crime correspondent Sandra Laville writes:

The Crown Office said Strathclyde Police will work with counterparts in London on any "Scottish dimension" relating to phone hacking across the border. In a statement, the Crown Office said: "In light of further emerging developments regarding the News of the World the Crown has asked Strathclyde Police to consider and assess specific claims of phone hacking and breaches of data protection in Scotland.

"Strathclyde Police will review available information and will liaise with the Metropolitan Police in relation to any Scottish dimension to their current investigations and will thereafter report their findings to the Area Procurator Fiscal at Glasgow." Strathclyde police also confirmed today it was conducting a scoping assessment into evidence that Andy Coulson may have perjured himself when giving evidence in the Tommy Sheridan trial.

Rebekah Brooks is reportedly to meet News of the World Staff at 4pm.

Reports of the staff reaction yesterday suggest she could be in for a hostile reception.

But the school where she serves as a governor, Fulwood Academy, is standing by her, the Lancashire Evening Post reports:



David Goldie, chairman of governors at the academy, said the school would stand by Ms Brooks, saying she had done a "fantastic" job. He added: "My understanding is Rebekah Brooks has said she had no knowledge of it, and her employer has supported her in that respect, and she believes the phone hacking is reprehensible. "I believe in presumed innocence. I would not ask her to stand down and I have to say she has been a fantastic governor for the academy."

Police have raided the Daily Star offices, the Guardian can confirm.

Clive Goodman, who was arrested today, currently works at the Daily Star Sunday.

The Taiwanese animators known for their unorthodox treatment of the biggest news stories have turned their attention to the phone-hacking scandal with News of the World portrayed as pirates. One gentleman, I think it's supposed to be Rupert Murdoch, has a shark's fin protruding from his back.

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Renault has become the first advertiser to publicly extend its advertising boycott to cover all News International newspapers despite the publisher's decision to close the News of the World, Brand Republic reports. It reports that Renault - which spent £343,829 with the News of the World in the 12 months to the end of April, 2011, according to Nielsen - said in a statement:



As a result of the seriousness of the continued allegations of phone hacking by News of the World, Renault is reviewing its media advertising plans. Pending the formal investigations, we currently have no advertising planned in any News International press titles in the immediate future.

Channel 4 News tweets:

Source at Daily Star tells #c4news the paper's editor is to address staff this afternoon at 4pm. Police have raided tabloid's offices. #NOTW

Which by coincidence is the same time Rebekah Brooks is due to address News of the World staff.

The Guardian's head of media and technology, Dan Sabbagh, has this on Ofcom and its monitoring of the BSkyB deal:

Ofcom is to discuss the News of the World investigation with the police so that the regulator can decide whether News Corporation is a "fit and proper" owner of BSkyB. The broadcast regulator this afternoon asked to be "kept abreast" of developments as regards the criminal enquiry into phone hacking at the News of the World, so it can make a decision as against the "fit and proper" test that all owners of television stations have to pass.

A colleague writes:

A contact at [Daily Star owners] Northern & Shell has just told me the police left with Goodman's emails, but it wasn't clear from what they said if this meant they had impounded his computer or made copies of his emails or both.

The Hacked Off campaign for a public inquiry into phone hacking has welcomed the prime minister's statement this morning and his promise of two inquiries. But it adds:

We are concerned about the relationship between the inquiries, the speed with which a full inquiry will be conducted, and the potential gaps between the three investigations. There is still a risk that fundamental questions about the affair – as to whose phones were hacked, who authorized it, how long it went on, which newspapers did it, and the relationship between the press, the police and politicians – may never be answered.





The former Lib Dem MP, Dr Evan Harris, a member of the advisory committee to the campaign, further said there was no reason to delay the judge-led inquiry into phone hacking and other illegal methods of intrusion. He said:

We see no legal requirement for this to wait until after police enquiries and that to do so could damage its ability to get to the truth.

Former Met police chief Brian Paddick has told my colleague Vikram Dodd it is now "blindingly obvious" that police would want to arrest and interview Rebekah Brooks, the controversial boss of News International.

Paddick said: "If Andy Coulson has been arrested, it is inevitable that Rebekah Brooks will get an invitation from the police that she can not refuse." Brooks was editor of the News of the World at the time Milly Dowler's phone was hacked, which she denies any knowledge of. She also told a committee in MPs that police had been paid for stories, but later said she had no knowledge of specific incidents. Paddick added: "I can't understand how a thorough police investigation that would arrest Andy Coulson and not arrest Rebekah Brooks." The former Met deputy assistant commissioner believes his phone was hacked into by the News of the World.

In the latest Media Talk podcast, Alan Rusbridger, Nick Davies, Roy Greenslade and Janine Gibson discuss the closure of the News of the World and the impact of the phone-hacking scandal on News International and the British newspaper industry

If Rebekah Brooks is punctual, then her meeting with News of the World staff should have started by now.

The Financial Times chief political correspondent, Beth Rigby, says Brooks will not be announcing her resignation...

@BethRigby Brooks is apparently not going to be announcing her resignation when she addresses NI at 4pm

...but stranger things have happened.

Meanwhile, @ExNOTWJourno, who is apparently an ex NOTW journo, (not confirmed) has "ears in the meeting" and believes Brooks will resign.

I think we might just have to wait and see.

Oh, and this is Adam Gabbatt again, by the way.

Ignore @ExNOTWJournalist, at least for the moment, because Sky News's political correspondent Sophy Ridge – who used to work at the News of the World – has a source in the Brooks meeting and is tweeting away.

@sophyridge Rebekah Brookes has apologised to staff fir "operational issues" ie email access

@sophyridge She also said she is trying to find them jobs where possible across News International and News Corp

Now then, a statement from the Daily Star Sunday regarding the police search of their offices today.

Daily Star Sunday say officers "formally requested any-and-all computer material that Goodman had been involved with during his occasional shifts as a freelance reporter at the paper over the last year to cross-check it with his activities in his News of the World role".

It adds: "They were particularly interested to check Mr Goodman's current email contacts to cross-match them with those from his time at the News of the World."

The statement adds that officers "confirmed they were similarly carrying out these routine checks at all places where Mr Goodman has worked as a freelance since he left the News of the World".

Full statement:

STATEMENT FROM THE DAILY STAR SUNDAY: "Scotland Yard today sought the help of the Daily Star Sunday as they investigated allegations of Police corruption involving the News of the World and its former Royal Editor Clive Goodman. They confirmed they were similarly carrying out these routine checks at all places where Mr Goodman has worked as a freelance since he left the News of the World. Officers formally requested any-and-all computer material that Goodman had been involved with during his occasional shifts as a freelance reporter at the paper over the last year to cross-check it with his activities in his News of the World role. They were particularly interested to check Mr Goodman's current email contacts to cross-match them with those from his time at the News of the World. There was no suggestion whatsoever that Mr Goodman had acted improperly during his occasional shifts at the Daily Star Sunday, and we can confirm that no payments of any kind were ever made by the newspaper to Clive Goodman contacts. After requesting the Daily Star Sunday's help, Police were invited to visit the newspaper's offices where they were provided with a copy of all Mr Goodman's computer activity.

The three officers were similarly invited to examine any desk where Mr Goodman may have sat during shifts. They left after approximately two hours with a disc of Mr Goodman's computer activity. For the record, the Daily Star Sunday has never carried, and has never been accused of carrying, any story that might have stemmed from phone-hacking."

Earlier we heard that a number of charities, including the Royal National Lifeboat Institution, "have rejected the chance to advertise for free in the final edition of the News of the World on Sunday" – (hat tip to Celina Ribeiro on civilsociety.co.uk.)

The RNLI have got in touch to say they weren't approached by the News of the World – but if they were to have been, they'd have turned it down anyway as it would be "potentially damaging to our reputation as a charity and to our ability to raise funds".

Ouch.

Statement from RNLI:

The RNLI has not been approached by the News of the World with an offer of free advertising. However, if we were to be, we believe accepting any such offer would be potentially damaging to our reputation as a charity and to our ability to raise funds – this is borne out unanimously by the comments we have received from our supporters so far today.

Sophy Ridge of Sky News is doing a great job of getting info out from the Brooks meeting, here's the latest:



@sophyridge Rebekah Brooks said that advertisers said the brand was "toxic" I'm hearing, and the decision "was not done lightly"

@sophyridge Rebekah Brooks says she is staying on because she is a conductor for it all

@sophyridge Rebekah Brooks says the decision to close the NotW was taken because there was another two years plus ahead of trouble

Oh, and for fans of other news, the Space Shuttle Atlantis has just blasted off...

Nick Clegg is in Paris doing his anguished face.

He says the Press Complaints Commission is a "busted flush", and the hacking revelations represent another example of the public losing faith with institutions. He says we've seen it with the MPs expenses, and the banking system, and now with the media and the police.

Poor old PCC. Everyone – including David Cameron and Ed Miliband – seems to think they aren't fit for purpose. But they're still alive and kicking, and have put out a statement to prove it.

"The independent public members (listed below) of the Press Complaints Commission have today made clear that its work will continue," it reads.

"It is important for everyone to recognise that the Government cannot simply order the replacement of the PCC, because it is an independent organisation."

The statement says the PCC recognises the need to reform, but is anxious that its "highly important work must still go on".

The statement is from the independent public members of the Press Complaints Commission: Ian Nichol, Julie Spence OBE QPM, Simon Sapper, Esther Roberton, John Home Robertson, Jeremy Roberts QC, Lord Grade of Yarmouth OBE, Michael Smyth, Professor Ian Walden.

Full statement:

The independent public members of the Press Complaints Commission have today made clear that its work will continue. It is important for everyone to recognise that the Government cannot simply order the replacement of the PCC, because it is an independent organisation. While we publicly accept the need for reform and improvement, and welcome the inquiries, our highly important work must still go on, in order that our service to the public (to obtain redress both before and after publication) can continue. Those who are calling for the end of the PCC have undervalued and underestimated its day-to-day work. The PCC exists to handle the complaints and pre-publication concerns of every member of the public in this country, many of whom lack the means to instruct lawyers in defence of their rights. It has a brilliant, and dedicated, staff of professionals, who work around the clock. Their work must be built upon, not jettisoned. While we hear the clearly-stated views of Members of Parliament, we call upon them to confirm that - pending the final outcome of both inquiries - the vital work of the PCC must be allowed to continue for the public good. Members of the public will still come to us for help, and our staff will offer it to them. Intrusions will be prevented and inaccuracies corrected. Newspapers and magazines will still be held to account by the Commission. We are pleased that all sectors of the industry (national, regional and magazines) have pledged their renewed commitment to adhere to the Code enforced independently by the PCC. Our work will go on.

Not everyone has forsaken Rebekah Brooks. She serves as a governor at a school in Preston, and the head has vowed to stand by her despite the phone hacking revelations.

The Lancashire Evening Post reports that Brooks "Brooks has served as a governor at the 1,000-pupil ... academy since it opened in September 2009".

And David Goldie, chairman of governors at the academy, has said she won't be leaving any time soon. He told the LEP:

My understanding is Rebekah Brooks has said she had no knowledge of it, and her employer has supported her in that respect, and she believes the phone hacking is reprehensible. I believe in presumed innocence. I would not ask her to stand down and I have to say she has been a fantastic governor for the academy.

Not entirely relevant piece of information: I'm from Preston, and worked in a pub round the corner from that school. For a week.

Rebekah Brooks is no longer in charge of the News International internal clean up committee – following a recommendation from James Murdoch and News Corp directors.

An official message sent to staff following her 4pm meeting reveals Will Lewis, Simon Greenberg and Jeff Palker – Brooks's lieutenants – will "report directly" to New York based Joel Klein on the clean-up.

The key paragraphs from Brooks's message to staff are below:

People have asked if it is right for me, as CEO of News International and as the Editor of the News of the World until January 2003, to oversee our efforts to assess allegations, address serious issues and prevent them from happening again. I'm determined that News International does this. For the avoidance of any doubt, however, the News Corporation independent directors agree with James Murdoch's recommendation that the Management and Standards Committee, comprised of Will Lewis, Simon Greenberg and Jeff Palker, report directly to Joel Klein in New York. Joel is leading and directing the Company's overall handling of this matter. Many of you will know that Joel is a respected former Assistant Attorney General of the United States. Joel and Viet Dinh, an independent director, are giving oversight and keeping our parent Company's Board advised as well.

Statement from the Guardian on the information it gave to the government regarding Andy Coulson:

Before the general election the Guardian contacted all three party leaders to tell them of certain facts about Andy Coulson which the Guardian could not at that stage report. In a telephone call around February 25th, Guardian deputy editor Ian Katz told the prime minister's director of strategy Steve Hilton a number of details about the case of Jonathan Rees, a private detective who had worked for the News of the World, which the paper had been unable to publish due to ongoing legal proceedings. These included: • Rees's name – he had been described in a Guardian report published online on February 24th and in the paper edition of February 25th only as "Mr A" • The fact that he was awaiting trial for a murder in which the victim was found in a pub car park with an axe in his head • The fact that Rees had been jailed for seven years for conspiring to frame a woman by placing cocaine in her car, after which he had been rehired by Coulson's News of the World. • The fact that Rees's illegal activities on behalf of the News of the World had been prominently reported in the Guardian before he was rehired under Coulson. None of these details was included in any report for several months until after the collapse of Rees's trial in March 2011. The thrust of the conversation was that Rees was a murder suspect who had been involved in massive corruption on behalf of the News of the World of which Coulson could not have been unaware. The Guardian understands No 10 chief of staff Edward Llewelyn was informed of this conversation. Downing Street's reference to the private detective working for Panorama is baffling and irrelevant to how the Rees information was handled. There was no suggestion that Rees ever had any connection with Panorama until March 2011, many months after No 10 was told the details of the Rees case.

Employment lawyers predict that News International could face tribunal proceedings from staff made redundant from News of the World, my colleague Maya Wolfe-Robinson writes:

Yvonne Gallagher, head of pensions and employment at solicitors Lawrence Graham LLP said that "it would appear that staff were given notice yesterday, with a suggestion that they will be paid for three months. If this is so, then assuming the reason for the notice is redundancy, News Corporation can expect to be presented with claims for failure to consult in connection with the proposed redundancies and unfair dismissal claims. "Employment legislation includes an obligation upon employers to consult on a range of issues ahead of terminating any employment by reason of redundancy. Where 100 or more staff are proposed to be dismissed, then this consultation must commence at least 90 days before the first dismissal takes effect. This requirement has consistently been interpreted by the courts in recent years as indicating that the consultation must take place, with either trade union representatives or representatives elected for the purpose of consultation by the staff, before notice is given. Simply triggering the notice period and endeavouring to consult in the period between giving notice and the contracts of employment coming to an end will not be sufficient." The NUJ announced on Thursday that staff were told they will receive a 90 day payment which covers the legally required consultation period for job cuts. Gallagher said that this will not free News International from their obligations. "The purpose of consultation is to seek to reach agreement about ways of avoiding the dismissals, reducing numbers to be dismissed and mitigating the consequences of dismissal. The statutory provisions do not provide the option of the employer simply " buying out" the obligation and the 90 day period is a minimum, rather than a prescribed period." Tribunals could award employees up to another 90 days' pay each if it is found that News of the World failed to consult.

Rebekah Brooks "has visibility" on further revelations relating to criminal activity, according to 'Sky Sources'.

Brooks has also apparently told staff that "in a year's time it'll become apparent why we did this".

Both those snippets are a bit baffling, but I'm sure all will become clear...

The following message is being sent out to subscribers to the News of the World, Roy Greenslade reveals on his blog:

Dear [x] It is with great regret that we write to inform you that after 168 years we will publish the final edition of the News of the World this Sunday. You will know that the paper has a proud history of fighting crime, exposing wrong-doing and regularly setting the news agenda for the nation. However, in recent times the good things that the News of the World have done have been sullied by behaviour that was wrong and inexcusable. As a result, the very difficult decision to close down the paper and notw.co.uk has been made. Advertising space in this last edition of the paper will be donated to good causes and charities and all revenues will go to organisations that improve life in Britain and are devoted to treating others with dignity. As a result of this decision, notw.co.uk will be open to the public for free for our final edition on Sunday 10th July. If you have already paid for access to the sites for this weekend and have outstanding credit on your account, we will contact you shortly and arrange a refund within the next 28 days. If you have any other questions please email help@notw.co.uk Thank you for reading the News of the World. Yours sincerely, The News of the World

Good evening. This is Ben Quinn taking over the News blog.

Sky News have obtained an audio recording of today's address by Rebekah Brooks to News of the World Employees during what she later described in an email as a "town hall meeting"

You can listen to part of it via audio boo thanks to this link tweeted by my colleague Lisa O'Carroll.

The embattled News International chief executive can be heard telling News of the World employees looking ahead to the last weekend of the paper: "There is no toxicity attached to you. That is the sadness"

Graeme McLagan, a former BBC home affairs correspondent and author of Bent Coppers, has written an important piece for the Guardian's Comment is Free site, under the heading: 'We've known about News of the World payments for years'.

He says that there is no escape from the fact that the News of the World was well known to be involved in making corrupt payments to police officers in the late 1990s and in the early 2000s.

McLagan goes to to recount what happened after he obtained confidential Scotland Yard reports and other documents relating to a bugging operation conducted against a south London private detective agency called Southern Investigations.

The agency was suspected of receiving leaks of information from corrupt detectives which was then sold on to tabloid newspapers, among them the News of the World and the Sunday Mirror.

More than £1 billion has been wiped from BSkyB's market value today, the Press Association has just reported.

PA adds:

Investors ditched shares in the company fearing that the recent revelations could lead Culture Secretary Jeremy Hunt to refer News Corporation's bid to buy the 61% of shares it does not already own to the Competition Commission. Media watchdog Ofcom also said it would contact police to determine if the allegations are relevant to whether News Corp would be a "fit and proper" owner of satellite broadcaster BSkyB. BSkyB's share price dropped nearly 8% today as investors ditched shares, reducing the company's market value by £1.1 billion to £13.1 billion. Its share price has now dropped nearly 12% this week, wiping £1.7 billion from its market value, and reversing some of the strong gains since News Corp, which is controlled by Mr Murdoch, made an initial bid a year ago. It was a similar story at News Corp, which saw its share price drop nearly 4% today, causing its market value to fall by some 1.9 billion US dollars (£1.2 billion).

More now from that meeting between Rebekah Brooks and NOTW journalists today, when she was accused of "contaminating" NOTW journalists.

In a secret recording obtained by Sky News, she can be heard telling reporters that she would try to find jobs for them elsewhere in the company.

But one employee told her: "Can you see that by your actions yesterday, your calling our newspaper toxic, we have all been contaminated by that toxicity by the way we've been treated."

"But can't you see the bigger picture? You're making the whole of News International toxic, and there's an arrogance there that you think we'd want to work for you again."

Brooks replied that there was "no arrogance coming from this standpoint".

She added: "I don't see there's anyone of you in this room here looking at me now that we wouldn't want to work (with) because we know there's no toxicity attached to you guys in the room.

"I mean that's the sadness. It wouldn't be sad, we wouldn't all be feeling like this if you guys were up to the neck in it like previous colleagues."

She admitted that the company was in "a very bad moment" but declared it would continue to invest in journalism.

News of the World staff said they had signed a contract preventing them from discussing details of what Brooks said in the meeting this afternoon, according to the Press Association.

One said she had referred to the Sun on Sunday that is expected to emerge from the ashes of the Sunday tabloid, adding that she did not elaborate on it.

"They have to make us redundant first and then they will recruit some people again," said an employee at the paper who did not want to be named.

"They have to do that to show they're scrapping the old paper."

Andy Coulson has just left Lewisham police station, where he has spent more than eight hours after being arrested on suspicion of bribing corrupt police officers.

He was immediately enveloped by a proverbial "media scrum" of the type which so often crowded around individuals who were subject of the News of the World's attention under his editorship.

Before stepping into a car which quickly left the scene, he said little other than: "I am afraid I can't say any more at this stage. There is a lot I would like to say."

Will those last nine words make for a sleepless night tonight for certain individuals?

Coulson has been released on police bail to return on a date in October, according to the Press Association.

My colleague Jane Martinson has filed a piece on the potential ramifications of the past couple of days for Rupert Murdoch's youngest son, James, who is Chairman and Chief Executive of News Corporation, Europe and Asia.

Here's an extract:

Inside News International's temporary offices, the decision to close the News of the World is being seen as classic Murdoch behaviour – a family known for taking tough, high-risk decisions that others would balk at. "James [Murdoch] has just had his Wapping moment," said someone close to the Murdochs. The decision to shut the paper was taken so quickly that only a handful of executives involved in the internal investigation even knew it was an option. In taking the flak, even appearing on television, something he is rarely comfortable with, Rupert Murdoch's youngest son is taking full responsibility for the scandal while his father and older brother Lachlan enjoy the hospitality of the annual Allen and Co shindig in Sun Valley, Idaho. Supporters will hope his decisive action and public appearances show he is increasingly ready to step into his father's shoes following his promotion to number three at News Corp in 2007. Detractors believe it is a high-risk strategy likely to see James, 38, mired in inquiries and investigations for years. Even David Cameron said on Friday that police should question anyone at the company, "no matter how high or low". Despite his success running BSkyB in defiance of critics who complained of nepotism when he was appointed, and his power at News Corp, Murdoch has had an uneasy relationship with the British media. Although he cares about the media business, he hates the British industry for what he sees as righteous self-regard and narrowness.

Scotland Yard have also now said that a 53-year-old man, understood to be former News of the World royal editor Clive Goodman, was also released on bail until October after being arrested on suspicion of corruption.

Channel 4 News has put together a clever graphic mapping "the circles of power" around News International Chief Executive, Rebekah Brooks.

Individuals who feature in it range from David Cameron to Jeremy Clarkson, who introduced Brooks to her husband-to-be, former racehorse trainer Charlie Brooks.

Others include cheesemaker and Blur's former bass player Alex James, Carphonewarehouse founder Charles Dunstone, PR man Matthew Freud and his wife Elisabeth Murdoch (left).

The individuals in the graphic are linked through friends, work, family, socially, Eton (Charlie Brooks and Cameron) and marriage.

The Disasters Emergency Committee (DEC), an

umbrella organisation which launches and coordinates responses to major disasters overseas, has confirmed that it is taking up an offer of free advertising space in this weekend's last ever edition of the News of the World.

A DEC spokesman explained why:

The purpose of the DEC is to maximise income to help those in poorer countries affected by major disasters. With more than ten million people at risk from drought and conflict in East Africa there is a humanitarian imperative for the DEC to take every possible opportunity to raise funds for the aid effort. The DEC trustees have therefore decided to take up the offer of a free advertisement in the News of the World. The DEC in no way condones the unconscionable behaviour of some News of the World journalists and executives.

Rebekah Brooks really does appear to be besieged on numerous fronts.

Here's a link to a facebook campaign (with 127 members at the moment) that has started up with the aim of getting the University of the Arts, London, to withdraw the honorary fellowship they gave to her last year.

The page's description says:

In the summer of 2010, when the honour was given, her reputation was already as such as to make such an honour, bestowed by a liberal university, grossly inappropriate. Recent revelations about the immoral, unethical and criminal activities taking place at the NOTW under her stewardship make it essential that this honour is withdrawn immediately.

Brooks was made an Honorary Fellow in July last year, alongside luminaries such as actor Simon Callow, sculptor Antony Gormley and director Joe Wright.

The were described on the university's website as "inspirational figures" who were being recognised for their "outstanding contribution to the arts and creative industries".

It was only a matter of time. The News of the World hacking scandal has been given the Taiwanese animation treatment.

The video has been produced by Next Media Animation, the Taiwanese Animators known for producing the animated video clips in the past about the woes of figures such as Tiger Woods as well as major news stories like the release of leaked diplomatic files by Wikileaks.

The latest video is entitled "Murdoch Pulls the Plug on News of the World (NOTW)".

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My colleague Sandra Laville has filed a piece on the police investigations which include the questioning of Coulson and Goodman and probes into alleged bribes paid to Met police officers as well as the activities of private detective Jonathan Rees.

In relation to the Rees investigation alone, she reports:

Officers are conducting preliminary investigations into the vast amounts of documentation relating to Rees, who ran a private detective company with his partner, former police officer Sid Fillery. Rees has already been the subject of five major police inquiries by the Met since his original partner Daniel Morgan was murdered in 1987. Earlier this year Rees and other associates stood trial for Morgan's murder but were formally acquitted when the case against them collapsed. Documentation in the Met's possession is extensive, spanning more than 750,000 pages containing evidence of corrupt practices by Rees and corrupt police officers who were paid to acquire information for the media. He is also alleged to have obtained confidential information by using virus-carrying emails to steal data and "blaggers" to trick banks into releasing details of customers' accounts. As a result of one of the Yard inquiries Rees was jailed for six years for conspiracy to pervert the course of justice. On his release from prison, in 2005, he continued to work for newspapers.

Some more audioboo clips now from today's address by Rebekah Brooks to News of the World staff, which was was secretly recorded and then obtained by Sky News.

My colleague Lisa O'Carroll has picked up on this extract, in which Brooks talks about how everyone from the Select Committee to News International and the police "drew the line in the sand in the wrong place" first time round.

She said they all believed there was nothing more to see. She said that she was restricted legally about what she can say and talks about having another "town hall" meeting in a week's time.

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Rebekah Brooks told News of the World staff today that she couldn't have resigned because she had no idea until the Guardian broke the story on Monday that anyone had hacked into Milly Dowler's phone.



In another extract from her address to staff at the paper today, which was recorded secretly, News International's chief executive said she knows rival newspapers think there was "a cover up".

Brooks added that the cause of all this hacking scandal will come out in due course and that it "will be another very difficult moment for the company".

She said it would have been wrong to resign as the truth about the matter wasn't yet known. She didn't know the truth, nobody yet knew the truth.

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The Metropolitan Police has just announced that it has arrested a man in connection with Operation Elveden, the investigation into inappropriate payments to police.

The 63-year-old man was arrested at a residential address in Surrey at 8.22pm. He is the third person to have been arrested tonight in connection with the alleged corrupt payments probe

The Met said in a statement:

The Metropolitan Police Service has this evening [8 July 2011] arrested a member of the public in connection with allegations of corruption. At 20:22 hrs officers from the MPS' Operation Weeting together with officers from Op Elveden arrested a man on suspicion of corruption allegations contrary to Section 1 of the Prevention of Corruption Act 1906. The man, aged 63, was arrested at a residential address in Surrey. A search is ongoing at this address. The Operation Weeting team is conducting the new investigation into phone hacking. Operation Elveden is the investigation into allegations of inappropriate payments to police. This investigation is being supervised by the IPCC.

Rupert Murdoch is flying to London tomorrow to deal with the crisis at his British media empire, the Financial Times reports.

Murdoch has been in Idaho at a media conference all week while his son James has been at the forefront of handling the fall-out from revelations about hacking at the News of the World. It fell to him to announce the closure of the News of the World.

Steve Coogan is discussing hacking on Newsnight and has said that he is glad that the News of the World - "an asylum seeker-hating newspaper" - has "gone to the wall".

Coogan, one of the alleged victims of phone-hacking affair at the News of the World, said that he had been warned in 2002 that his phone had been hacked.

But he was warned that he could not "go after" Andy Coulson - who became deputy ediutor of the newspaper in 2000 and editor in 2003 - because the journalist was "untouchable".

Coogan credited the "tenacity of the Guardian and a few individuals who had the guts to take on an intimidating organisation".

The fireworks have suddenly gone off on Newsnight.

Paul McMullen, who was Deputy Features editor at the News of the World from 1994 to 2001, got a few seconds into lamenting the potential impact of the hacking scandal on the role of the tabloid press in British democracy before Greg Dyke, former director general of BBC, and Steve Coogan launched a series of broadsides against him.

"I think you are a walking PR disaster for the tabloids because you don't come across in a sympathetic way," Coogan told him

"Your come across as a risible individual."

"You are absolutely nothing to do with a decent press and a free democracy," said Dyke.

McMullen attempted to fight back, asking Coogan how many "Murdoch movies" he had appeared in, claiming that the actor had a publicist who spent their time trying to get Coogan in the press.

"You spend your time trying to get in the press. How many Murdoch movies have you been in? You take five million quid a movie and then you bleet on."

Angered by McMullen's assertion that he was a journalist, Coogan told him: "You're not a journalist. You know you are not."

The future? Details recording who the domain name sunonsunday.co.uk is registered to appear to have been updated today. The 'Registrant' is now listed as 'News International Newspapers Limited'.

Thanks to Lewie Procter for bringing that to our attention.

Here's a quick round-up of tomorrow's front pages:

• 'Now police ask: was there a cover-up at Murdoch HQ' - The Guardian

• 'Coulson arrested: There's a lot I'd like to say but I can't' - The Times

• 'Hacking scandal hits No10' - The Daily Telegraph

• 'Murdoch flies in to tackle crisis' - The Financial Times

• 'Hacking scandal: Is this Britain's Watergate' - The Independent

• 'Flaming Cheek! British gas whacks £200 on your energy bill - and that's on top of crippling green taxes' - Daily Mail

• 'Thumpin' stack of cash on your gas gas gas' - The Sun

• 'Murdoch empire in crisis - Toxic' - The Daily Mirror

• 'EU cheats us out of jobs' - the Daily Express

• 'Royal Thighness' - The Daily Star

(Twitpics courtesy of Nick Sutton)

After the News of the World's closure, family feuds at the heart of the Murdoch empire do not bode well for News Corp, Michael Wolff writes on the Guardian's Comment is Free site.

Wolff, author of the Man Who Owns the News: Inside the Secret World of Rupert Murdoch, writes that Murdoch "family insiders" say it was Matthew Freud, husband of Elisabeth Murdoch, who suggested closing the News of the World.