Coulson's 'severance package' casts doubt on answers to parliament

The BBC's Robert Peston has claimed that Andy Coulson, former editor of the News Of The World and David Cameron's ex-spin doctor remained in the pay of News International while he was working for the Tory party:

Andy Coulson, the former editor of the News of the World who has been arrested on suspicion of involvement in phone hacking and bribing the police, received several hundred thousand pounds from News International after starting work as the Conservative Party's Director of Communications in July 2007.

Peston makes clear the alleged payments "were part of [Coulson's] severance package" but whatever his contractual entitlement to the money, there will be plenty who point to an obvious conflict of interests if one of David Cameron's key advisors did accept undisclosed payments from the nation's most powerful media company - former employer or not. There may also be questions for the Conservatives to answer, given they have claimed previously that they were satisfied Coulson had severed his ties with News International prior to starting work with the party.

What's more, Peston's claims, if true, will raise fresh doubts about the validity of answers provided to the House of Commons Culture, Media Sport committee by Coulson in July 2009. Not least because of this exchange between Tom Watson MP and Coulson:

Tom Watson: Just one last round of questioning. You knew that you were going to resign before sentencing but on the day of sentencing you resigned from the paper.

Mr Coulson: I actually resigned two weeks before I announced it.

Tom Watson: Two weeks before. And did you get a redundancy payment for that?

Mr Coulson: I got what was contractually due to me. Obviously I did not work my notice so I received what was contractually due.

Tom Watson: Then you were six months out of work.

Mr Coulson: About five months.

Tom Watson: And then you went work directly for the Conservative Party.

Mr Coulson: That is right.

Tom Watson: And you have not got any secondary income other than that have you?

Mr Coulson: No.

Tom Watson: So your sole income was News International and then your sole income was the Conservative Party?.

Mr Coulson: Yes.

Comments

[Ethan]

Someone is keeping the Coulson story bubbling, drip a poison little here wait a couple of weeks then , drip a little more poison there. It's a masterly exercise by some media genius. Such as Max Clifford.

I take my hat off to the anonymous media manipulator running this story. Sir your an evil genius.

[Richard Thomas]

Legally if someone resigns from an organisation they normally give notice; if they leave before the expiral of the notice then technically they are in breach of contract; if the employer wishes them to be off the premises then they may do a deal to pay them for the notice they are required to give but in this case, as there seems to have been mutual agreement to part, no payment would have been needed. Talk of a severance package is misleading since Mr Coulson was not dismissed and News International had no obligation to pay him to the end of his contract unless they chose to do so - a most unusual situation indeed.