Sun publisher sets aside £127m for phone hacking

The publisher of the Sun newspaper has set aside £127m to cover the costs of phone hacking court cases, according to recent company filings.

News Group Newspapers said it hoped the sum would resolve the "tail end of litigation" sparked by years-old revelations that staff had intercepted voicemails of celebrities and others.

A case brought by Prince Harry is among those covered, the BBC understands.

News Group said the sum was not a sign it accepted liability.

Hundreds of celebrities have brought cases for voicemail interception against News Group Newspapers, the publisher of the Sun and the defunct News of the World, over more than a decade.

The volume of phone hacking allegations against the News of the World led to the paper’s closure in 2011.

There has been a rush of new cases filed since a judge imposed a cut-off date for new claims to join the current wave going through the courts.

A spokesperson for News Group Newspapers said: “In 2012, an unreserved apology was made to all of those who had brought cases against the News of the World for voicemail interception. Since then, NGN has been paying financial damages to claimants."

The News Group spokesperson added: “There are a number of disputed claims still going through the civil courts including some which seek to involve The Sun. The Sun does not accept liability or make any admissions to the allegations. It is of course common litigation practice for parties to reach a settlement before trial to bring a resolution to the matter for commercial reasons.”

News Group earmarked £46.8m for damages and claimant's legal expenses relating to phone hacking and inappropriate payments to public officials in the twelve months to 3 July 2022, and another £53m for future costs, totalling £99.8m, according to accounts filed at Companies House.

It has budgeted a further £27.5m for legal fees relating to the closure of the News of the World.

That marked a significant increase from the £49m in legal fees and damages the firm disclosed in the previous year.

The final sum may be significantly higher or lower than this, “depending on the course of the litigation,” the company noted in the accounts.

The legal costs helped to push the company into an annual loss of £127m, up from £52m the previous year.

Turnover was slightly up at £320m, boosted by higher digital advertising revenue.

News Corp split from Fox Corp in 2013, and as part of the deal Fox agreed to reimburse News Group’s parent, News UK, for the cost of court cases predating the split.

News Corp is run by the billionaire media mogul Rupert Murdoch, who is executive chairman, and controlled by the Murdoch family.

Actor Sienna Miller and footballer Paul Gascoigne, who settled a case against News Group in 2021, are among the dozens of high-profile figures who have resolved cases against the firm.