英伦广角 2011-04-17 手机窃听门（在线收听）

They’ve said sorry and offered compensation to some, but for News International, the phone hacking scandal isn’t going away. Today, many want to know why the apology didn’t come sooner as police investigation continues to delve into the saga.

In the statement, they said “The News International has decided to approach some civil litigants with an unreserved apology and admission of liability in cases meeting specific criteria. It’s now apparent that our previous inquiries failed to uncover important evidence and we acknowledge our actions then were not sufficiently robust. ”

Lawyers for News International are now dealing with compensation scheme to settle justifiable claims. But there are caveats say it only covers cases from 2004 to 2006. And the paper says they’ll fight any claim it believes lacks merits. It’s understood that at least 8 people are now in line for payment included in those eight are: Tessa Jowell, Sienna Miller, Andy Gray, and assistants who worked for John Prescott and Max Clifford.

News International’s announcement yesterday has now opened up the floodgate, they put their hands up. So apart from the 8 people named, who will be looking to get a vast sum of money in compensation. Loads of others will now come out because so many people are outspoken to believe their phones have been hacked. Not by News International, many of them, but by other newspapers.

Only this week, Ian Edmondson, the papers’ former news editor, and Neville Thurlbeck, his chief reporter were arrested. They’ve been now released on police bail.

As the team in Scotland Yard continues to sift again through thousands of documents, this latest admission raises questions about how far criminal charges could stretch.

“I think what it is important is for individuals who broke the law to be held to account, if the police can prove the people have committed criminal offences. Then we should be seeing more people go to prison.”

John Prescott is among those calling for the takeover of BSkyB by News International’s parent group News Corp to be halted until police have concluded their investigation. There’s bound to be a split reaction to yesterday’s apology. The cynical will question the timing and motive. Other victims may be slightly mellowed. Either way, it’s not the end of the story.