John Prescott has a smoking gun aimed at Rupert Murdoch

LORD PRESCOTT, the jovial insurance selling, face-punching, former deputy prime minister has claimed that the police have "significant new evidence" in the News of the World (NOTW) phone hacking case.

Lord Prescott, John to his mum, was speaking to the BBC when he said that the police had told him personally - he claims to have been a victim of phone hacking - that the case is progressing at a good pace.

Prescott added that this proved that earlier police probes, which saw one reporter go to jail and one editor turned political advisor go to the job centre, were lacking.

Although just a couple of heads have rolled at NOTW offices, Prescott said that there were hundreds of journalists involved in the widespread phone hacks against targets including his good self.

In a statement Prescott said that he had met lead investigating officer, Deputy Assistant Commissioner Sue Akers this week, and had learned of the new discoveries.

"She informed me that significant new evidence relating to phone hacking and myself had been discovered and that they were investigating it," he said.

"I think this proves my long-held belief that the original Met police investigation into [private investigator Glenn] Mulcaire and News International was completely inadequate and failed to follow all the evidence. I now look forward to the Met Police finally uncovering the truth."

Prescott was more vocal when he appeared on the BBC Breakfast show, and suggested that it was the relationship between Rupert Murdoch's newspapers and the police that had hampered investigations. He didn't suggest that the Met had assigned the investigations to a police dog that was three days away from being retired for medical reasons, but that's the sort of impression we got.

"Since it was a criminal act committed, why didn't the police take criminal action?" he asked. "There are a lot of questions now being asked as to why they didn't do that and that is to do with the relationship, frankly, between Murdoch press and the Met Police."

The NOTW did not respond to the BBC's report. µ