Rebekah Brooks: 'News International acted quickly on phone hacking'

Rebekah Brooks has told MPs that News International acted "quickly and decisively" with the phone-hacking scandal at the News of the World.

Brooks appeared in front of the Commons culture, media and sport select committee to discuss the claims against the newspaper.

The former News of the World editor said that the company settled civil cases after claims of phone hacking were made by actress Sienna Miller last year.

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She told MPs that she was "shocked" at reports of her journalists hacking the mobile phone of murdered schoolgirl Milly Dowler.

"We had been told by people at the News of the World at the time - they consistently denied any of these allegations in various internal investigations," she explained.

"It was only when we saw the Sienna Miller documentation that we realised the severity of the situation."

Her appearance came after News Corporation chief Rupert Murdoch and his son James Murdoch, head of News International, also appeared before the Commons committee, during which Rupert Murdoch was attacked with a foam pie by a man named as Johnnie Marbles.

Brooks started her hearing by saying: "I would like to add my own personal apologies to the apologies that James and Rupert Murdoch have made today.

"Allegations of voice intercepts, internet intercepts of victims of crime is pretty horrific and abhorrent and I wanted to reiterate that."

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In relation to the hacking of Dowler's phone while she was editor, she later said: "The idea that Milly Dowler's phone was accessed by someone being paid by the News of the World, or even worse authorised by someone at the News of the World, is as abhorrent to me as it is to everyone in this room.

"I don't know anyone in their right mind who would authorise, no, sanction, approval, anyone listening to the voicemails of Milly Dowler in those circumstances.

"I just don't know anyone who would think it was the right and proper thing to do at this time or at any time."

Rebekah Brooks is currently on police bail until October after she was arrested on Sunday morning in connection with allegations of phone hacking and corruption made against the News of the World.