Phone hacking scandal deepens

[Jan Klimkowski]

Ah - a truthteller, describing the expectation that he would bribe coppers whilst working for the Murdoch crime family.

Crime Reporters' Association president Jeff Edwards was chief crime correspondent of the Daily Mirror for 15 years and was been a journalist on national papers and TV for 35 years. As well as his role at the CRA, he has been an associate lecturer at the Police Staff College at Bramshill, Hants.

Edwards joined the News of the World in 1981 and was soon appointed as crime correspondent. He says that Sunday newspapers operate in a different environment to daily titles.

"It became apparent that I wasn't doing the job to the satisfaction of my then boss, my news editor. He became quite animated about this issue. We had a discussion one day … and he said to me 'You've got to up your game' … and I said 'It's really difficult' … he said there's money available you should be out there spending it on your contacts. I said, 'I'm sorry ,what are you suggesting?'. He said 'You know, you need to put some inducements out there.'

He adds:

"About three or four weeks later clearly my performance was still not satisfactory; he took me to one side … and said to me 'Have you taken up my suggestion?' He said … 'You should essentially be bribing more police officers.' I said 'I didn't come into journalism to do that sort of thing' … A couple of weeks later I was removed from post and replaced."

12.52pm: Edwards says some News of the World reporters "played very fast and loose with the truth" and he has heard anecdotal evidence that sources would be paid "in other areas of public life".

He left the News of the World in 1985.

12.54pm: Edwards joined the Daily Mirror in 1986. He says it was "different altogether" from the News of the World. "There was a very high ethical standard there," he adds.