News International has been 'notably evasive' over allegations about using private investigators, he said: it had used a 'bad apple' argument to suggest that only one journalist [Clive Goodman] had been associated with phone hacking practices; and was 'hiding behind' its own confidentiality agreements.
Arguing against industry critics, who have said there is little fresh evidence in the Guardian's allegations, Rusbridger said: "I hope and believe that any newspaper or broadcaster would have published that [allegations] if presented with the evidence."
Nick Davies, the journalist who authored the main reports alleging widespread instances of phone hacking attempts, said that a key source had proclaimed the News International statement on Friday as 'designed to deceive'.
In addition, a number of new sources have got in touch with him following News International's statement of denial, the journalist claimed.
Davies has now been authorised to make public evidence which was previously kept private, he said.
New evidence included [Update - the Guardian has made edited versions available here]
- Email which showed that News of the World chief reporter Neville Thurlbeck and another [unnamed by Davies] reporter had been in communication with the private investigator Glenn Mulcaire [jailed in 2007, along with NOTW royal correspondent, Clive Goodman], with a transcript of 35 messages between PFA chief executive Gordon Taylor and his legal adviser.
- A contract which showed former NOTW assistant editor Greg Miskiw's name on an agreement with Mulcaire, who was using a false name.
On Friday night, however, Davies said, the Metropolitan Police put out a statement saying 'the process of contacting people is underway and we expect this to take some time to undertake'.
This came out late on Friday, and was not reported by newspapers on Saturday, he added.
"I think there is something quite worrying here for all of us. I think what begins to be very worrying about all this is that we're not being told the truth," Davies said.
"It is very, very hard to resist the conclusion that News International has been involved in covering up the involvement of its journalists with private investigators who have broken the law," he said.
Finding a way forward
Earlier in the session, Rusbridger suggested 'a way forward' might be found, if new ethical guidelines were adopted by newspapers, as reasonable conditions for certain types of investigation.
As an example from another sector, he cited Sir David Ormand's Institute of Public Policy Research paper report that laid out morality rules for national security strategy.
The suggested guidelines for national surveillance were reported by the Guardian in February 2009, as below:
- "There must be sufficient sustainable cause and the scale of potential harm justifies using national intelligence in this way;
- "There must be integrity of motive and the advantages sought are justifiable in terms of public good;
- "The methods used must be proportionate to the seriousness of the business in hand using only the minimum intrusion into the private affairs of others;
- "Proper authority has to be authorised at sufficiently senior level with appropriate oversight;
- "There must be a reasonable prospect of success with acceptable levels of the risk of unintended consequences or of political or diplomatic damage if exposed;
- "Use of secret intelligence methods must be the last, rather than the first, resort - is the information available from open sources?"
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