Leveson inquiry rejects Jeremy Hunt's bid to appear early

Jeremy Hunt will not be allowed to give evidence at the Leveson Inquiry early "in the interests of fairness to all", an inquiry spokesman has said.

The culture secretary wanted his appearance - expected to be in mid-May - moved so he could defend his role in News Corp's attempt to take over BSkyB.

He has pledged to hand over private emails about the bid, saying they will show he acted with "total integrity".

Labour and some Lib Dems want a probe into whether he broke ministers' rules.

A date for Mr Hunt's appearance before Lord Justice Leveson's inquiry into the culture, practices and ethics of the Press has not been set, but politicians will not be called until mid-May.

BBC political correspondent Robin Brant said it was now clear that only David Cameron would make any decision on whether Mr Hunt broke the rules, because Lord Leveson had emphasised that he would not act as an arbiter.

Mr Hunt wanted to appear at the Leveson inquiry sooner than planned so he could deal with the crisis around his role in the failed takeover of BSkyB, our correspondent added.

At the end of a dangerous week for Jeremy Hunt two things are clear about the culture secretary and the Leveson Inquiry.

First, Mr Hunt's attempt to speed things up, assisted by the intervention of Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg, angered the Leveson team.

They didn't like being pressured by politicians with a problem.

Second, the issue of the ministerial code and abiding or not abiding by it, will not change one bit.

Lord Justice Leveson has made it clear only the prime minister is the arbiter of the code - he won't and can't make any judgement on it.

So calls for the prime minister to order an inquiry could grow.

Jeremy Hunt will have to sit tight for a few weeks yet - assuming he can - and those private emails and texts he claims will vindicate his position can't help him for a few weeks yet.

On Friday Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg backed the idea of using the Leveson inquiry to investigate Mr Hunt's conduct, saying the inquiry was "the best context... to find out what happened or what didn't happen."

Mr Hunt's special adviser Adam Smith has resigned over what he admitted was an inappropriately close relationship with News Corporation during its planned takeover of satellite broadcaster BSkyB.

Mr Hunt has said he did not know about the extent and tone of the contact between the media giant and Mr Smith.

But under the ministerial code of conduct, Mr Hunt is responsible for the actions of his special advisers - a fact which has fuelled calls for a separate inquiry into his conduct.

Labour had accused the government of sweeping the issue of Mr Hunt's conduct under "the big carpet" of the Leveson inquiry into press ethics.

"Instead of hiding behind Leveson" Mr Cameron should "show his responsibility as PM and make sure the ministerial code is imposed", Labour leader Ed Miliband said.

Mr Hunt said on Friday he would make his emails available to the Leveson Inquiry and he was "confident they will vindicate the position that I handled the BSkyB merger process with total integrity".

There have been growing calls for the prime minister's independent adviser on ministerial interests, Sir Alex Allan, to investigate whether there has been any breach of the ministerial code after details of the contact between Mr Smith and News Corp emerged in a series of emails seen by the Leveson Inquiry.

But Conservative MP Mark Field says Sir Alex would not be regarded as independent if he investigated the matter, and suggested the role should be scrapped altogether.

"My concern is that if this whole process was triggered, you would then have the cross-current of this going on at the same time as Leveson and then a whole lot of journalists at the end of it would turn around and say, 'Well, that wasn't independent either because it was the prime minister who determined it.'"

Leading Tory backbencher Bernard Jenkin has called for such a move, saying it was extraordinary that a special adviser should have anything to do with a secretary of state's quasi-judicial role in a matter such as a take-over bid.

The culture secretary should refer the case himself to the watchdog, Lib Dem MP Lorely Burt said, adding that Mr Cameron should not have "put him in the position" of having to adjudicate on the bid given his colleague's previously supportive comments about News Corporation.