The names of senior journalists at the News of the World (NOTW) who commissioned private investigator Glenn Mulcaire to hack phones must be handed to police, the High Court ruled yesterday.
The order by Justice Vos means Scotland Yard will have full access to Mulcaire's witness statement in the case brought against him and the now defunct newspaper by Nicola Phillips, a former assistant to the PR consultant Max Clifford.
The ruling was made at a pre-trial hearing of the latest tranche of 50 civil actions filed against News International over phone hacking. It follows the decision by the Supreme Court to refuse an appeal from Mulcaire.
The Met Police's counsel, Jonathan Dixey, said further charges against Mulcaire and others could follow. The judge admitted Mulcaire's statement contained "positive information" that may benefit police investigations.
New charges were brought against Mulcaire by the Crown Prosecution Service last week in a list that included: the NOTW's former news editor, Greg Miskiw; the former head of news Ian Edmondson; and the former news editor and chief reporter Neville Thurlbeck. News International's former chief executive, Rebekah Brooks, and the paper's former editor, Andy Coulson, were also charged.
