Spears family accuses Dr Phil of betrayal

Britney Spears' family have accused Dr Phil McGraw of betraying their trust by going public about his meetings with the singer.

The TV therapist visited Spears on the request of her family, but they have claimed they were looking for support rather than any public statement.

The family's spokesperson, Lou Taylor, told US TV show Today: "The family basically extended an invitation of trust for him to come in as a resource to support them, not to go out and make public statements.

"Any statement publicly that he made, because he was brought in under this cloak of trust, [is] just inappropriate."

She added that the family wanted "support" from McGraw rather than "to add to the trouble that is already upon them".

McGraw was criticised by his fellow professionals earlier in the week, who claimed his visit was inappropriate.