A former News of the World intern has claimed he was paid to spy on a gay youth group.

Benjamin Myers, whose Twitter bio says he’s an “award-winning writer” and “freelance journalist”, made the allegations on Twitter.

He wrote that: “As an intern, @piersmorgan’s News Of The World once paid me to spy on a youth group for gay teens.

“He assumed it must be a paedophile ring.”

The incident is alleged to have taken place in 1995, while Piers Morgan was editor of the News of the World, then one of the best selling tabloid newspapers in the UK.

Mr Myers says he was a teenager desperate to get into journalism when he was sent on the mission.

“I was 19, desperate to get into journalism. I was wired up, paid £110 per hour.

“They were lovely.

“I vowed never to become tabloid scum.”

Mr Myers claims have not been corroborated by other sources.

Morgan was heavily criticised in the official findings of the Leveson Inquiry, when Lord Leveson stated that comments made in Morgan’s testimony about phone hacking were “utterly unpersuasive”.

The News of the World stopped printing in 2011 following a long series of phone hacking accusations.

PinkNews has approached a representative of Piers Morgan for comment on the allegations.