Phone hacking: Cameron's 'hindsight' regret on Coulson
Phone hacking: Cameron's 'regret' over hiring Coulson
(40 minutes later)
David Cameron says he would not have employed ex-News of the World editor Andy Coulson if he knew what would emerge about phone hacking there.
David Cameron has told MPs that "with hindsight" he would not have hired ex-News of the World editor Andy Coulson.
The prime minister said that "with hindsight" it appeared the wrong decision and he would offer a "profound apology" if Mr Coulson was found to have lied to him over his involvement.
In the closest he has come to an apology, the PM said: "Of course I regret, and I am extremely sorry, about the furore it has caused."
"You live and learn and believe me I have learnt," the PM said.
Amid stormy Commons scenes, Labour leader Ed Miliband accused the PM of a "catastrophic error of judgement".
But Ed Miliband said there had been a "deliberate attempt to hide the facts".
Mr Cameron returned early from a trip to Africa to make an emergency statement on the phone hacking crisis.
The Labour leader said repeated warnings about Mr Coulson's suitability for the job as Mr Cameron's press spokesman had been ignored.
He said that if Mr Coulson - Mr Cameron's former media spokesman - had lied about phone hacking at his time at the News of the World then he should face "severe" criminal charges.
In an emergency statement to MPs, Mr Cameron also said inquiry into the phone hacking scandal will be widened to examine the conduct of individuals in the police, media and politics.
'Protect himself'
The prime minister told MPs he had accepted "significant amendments" to the terms of reference of probe to be conducted by Lord Leveson. As well as newspapers, the inquiry will also examine the role played by broadcasters and social media.
He added: "If it turns out I have been lied to that would be a moment for a profound apology, and in that event I can tell you I will not fall short."
Mr Cameron cut short a trip to Africa to take part in an emergency debate on confidence in the media and the police, shaken by alleged malpractice at the News of the World and the resignations of two senior Met Police officers.
And he told MPs that with hindsight "I would not have offered him the job and I expect that he wouldn't have taken it".
Labour says he still has questions to answer about his decision to employ former NoW editor Andy Coulson and that No 10 ignored warnings on this.
But Mr Miliband said this was "not good enough" and repeated questions about Mr Coulson had been met "with a wall of silence" by Mr Cameron's aides.
"The country has the right to expect that the prime minister would have made every effort to know the facts about Mr Coulson, to protect himself and his office," he said.
"This can't be put down to gross ignorance. It was a deliberate attempt to hide from the facts on Mr Coulson."
Mr Cameron also faced a barrage of questions from Labour MPs over whether he had broken the ministerial code by discussing Rupert Murdoch's bid to take control of BSkyB with News International executives such as Rebekah Brooks.
To roars of outrage from the Opposition benches, Mr Cameron replied: "I never had any inappropriate conversations".
He insisted he had taken himself out of the decision-making process entirely - and that his Labour predecessors Tony Blair and Gordon Brown had enjoyed a closer relationship with the Murdoch empire than him.
Emergency debate
Confidence in the media and the police has been shaken by alleged malpractice at the News of the World and the resignations of two senior Met Police officers.
Downing Street released emails on Tuesday showing that Mr Cameron's chief of staff Ed Llewellyn had prevented senior police officers briefing the Tory leader on the phone-hacking investigation.
Downing Street released emails on Tuesday showing that Mr Cameron's chief of staff Ed Llewellyn had prevented senior police officers briefing the Tory leader on the phone-hacking investigation.
Mr Coulson's former deputy at the News of the World, Neil Wallis, also gave "informal" advice to the Conservative Party ahead of the election, the party has confirmed.
Both Mr Wallis and Mr Coulson have since been arrested and questioned by detectives on the new phone-hacking inquiry launched earlier this year.
Both Mr Wallis and Mr Coulson have since been arrested and questioned by detectives on the new phone-hacking inquiry launched earlier this year.
In other developments in the phone hacking saga:
In other developments in the phone hacking saga:
Speaker John Bercow launches an independent investigation into the incident at Rupert Murdoch's committee hearing on Tuesday, saying it was "wholly unacceptable"
The Met Police is accused of a "catalogue of failures" over the News of the World phone-hacking inquiry in a damning report by MPs
Downing Street and Buckingham Palace strongly deny claims by Labour MP Chris Bryant that royal officials raised concerns about Mr Coulson's appointment
Shares in News Corporation rose by 6% at the close of trading in New York after Rupert and James Murdoch's appearance in front of the committee
The law firm hired by News International in 2007 to review allegations of phone hacking says it is being prevented from responding to "inaccurate" comments made by James Murdoch. Mr Murdoch said a letter written by the law firm made executives at News International believe that hacking was a "matter of the past". Harbottle and Lewis says it is not being allowed to breach client confidentiality
Mr Cameron says the public inquiry into the phone hacking scandal will be widened to examine the conduct of individuals in the police, media and politics.
Speaker John Bercow launches an independent investigation into the incident at Rupert Murdoch's committee hearing on Tuesday, saying it was "wholly unacceptable"
The Met Police is accused of a "catalogue of failures" over the News of the World phone-hacking inquiry in a damning report by MPs
Downing Street and Buckingham Palace strongly deny claims by Labour MP Chris Bryant that royal officials raised concerns about Mr Coulson's appointment
Shares in News Corporation rose by 6% at the close of trading in New York after Rupert and James Murdoch's appearance in front of the committee
The law firm hired by News International in 2007 to review allegations of phone hacking says it is being prevented from responding to "inaccurate" comments made by James Murdoch. Mr Murdoch said a letter written by the law firm made executives at News International believe that hacking was a "matter of the past". Harbottle and Lewis says it is not being allowed to breach client confidentiality
The Commons is sitting for an extra day after the prime minister delayed MPs' summer recess so he could address the issue.
The Commons is sitting for an extra day after the prime minister delayed MPs' summer recess so he could address the issue.
Mr Cameron will make a statement to Parliament at 11.30am about the terms of reference for the judicial inquiry into phone hacking, police corruption and the future of press regulation, after which he will answer MPs' questions.
A general debate on public confidence in the media and police which could last up to six hours.
'Coulson mistake'
This will be followed by a general debate on public confidence in the media and police which could last up to six hours.
Labour, which pressed strongly for the debate, say Mr Cameron must answer questions about the role of Ed Llewellyn, who they claim was twice given important information relating to phone hacking and "refused to pass it on" to the prime minister.
"He (David Cameron) knows he took a risk in employing Andy Coulson and that has not paid off - it was a mistake to have done so," said Labour MP Chris Bryant.
"But on top of that we have got this impression of lots of people trying to tell the prime minister not to go ahead with this but nobody in Downing Street ever letting the prime minister hear bad news."
Mr Cameron has said he "sought and received assurances" from Mr Coulson over phone hacking before appointing him as his press chief in 2007 - a position he resigned from in January.
BBC Political Editor Nick Robinson said cabinet secretary Gus O'Donnell had made it clear that it would have been totally inappropriate for the prime minister to get any private briefing from the police about an ongoing inquiry.
But he said the real test for Mr Cameron on Wednesday was whether he could convince MPs and the public that he had done all that needed to be done to address public concerns.
Ahead of the debate, Culture Secretary Jeremy Hunt said News Corporation still had questions to answer about why Rupert Murdoch and other executives did not know about the extent of phone hacking at the News of the World.
Murdoch e-mail
The culture secretary told the BBC he was "shocked" that "people at the top" did not know about the apparent wrongdoing.
In his evidence to the Commons media committee on Tuesday, Mr Murdoch said he only learnt that phone hacking was more widespread at the paper than originally claimed at the start of the year - when the company passed new information over to the police.
He said he felt "betrayed" by certain executives within News International but did not pinpoint those he felt were responsible so as not to prejudice the police investigation.
On Wednesday, the News Corporation boss sent an e-mail to all employees, saying that those responsible must "be held accountable under the law".
