Coulson Perjury Trial Hears 2010 Recording

Evidence has begun in the Scottish perjury trial of Andy Coulson, the former Downing Street Director of Communications.

The 47 year-old is accused at the High Court in Edinburgh of lying under oath when he gave evidence as a witness in the 2010 trial of former MSP Tommy Sheridan.

The charges against Coulson relate to activities while he was the editor of the News Of The World.

He is accused of lying when he said he didn't know one of his reporters was involved in phone hacking, together with private investigator Glenn Mulcaire.

A tape recording of the evidence Coulson gave during the December 2010 trial of Mr Sheridan was played in court.

Coulson was heard being questioned by Mr Sheridan, who was conducting his own defence.

He was asked why he left the News Of The World.

Coulson said it was because one of his reporters, Clive Goodman, had been convicted of phone hacking and he decided that he should take ultimate responsibility.

He said: "I had no knowledge he was doing these things but felt I had to take responsibility."

On the tape, Coulson said that he did not know who the private investigator Glenn Mulcaire was before Clive Goodman was arrested.

He said at that point he discovered that Glenn Mulcaire was employed by the paper as a freelance investigator.

He said that Mulcaire's company, Nine Consultancy, was paid around £100,000-a-year to carry out research and other legitimate work but that he didn't know Mulcaire "as an individual" until after Clive Goodman's arrest.

Coulson was heard being asked, on the tape, if he knew about payments made to corrupt police officers.

He replied: "Not to my knowledge."

Coulson denies all the charges on the indictment which alleges that he falsely stated that before the arrest of Mulcaire and Goodman in 2006, he did not know that Goodman was involved in phone hacking, together with Mulcaire.

It claims he falsely said he did not know that payments were made to Mulcaire by Goodman and that he did not know of Mulcaire's "illegal activities".

It also alleges that Coulson lied when he said he did not have any email exchanges with Goodman in relation to Mulcaire.

The Crown further alleges that Coulson falsely stated that he did not know of Mulcaire, had not heard his name, did not know that he was employed by the News Of The World newspaper, and did not know that Nine Consultancy was Mulcaire.

It is also alleges that Coulson lied when he said he had no knowledge of payments being made to corrupt police officers by staff of the News Of The World while he was employed as an editor there.

The trial continues.