Coulson Spent Weekend With PM After Resigning

Former News of the World editor Andy Coulson has admitted spending a weekend with David Cameron since resigning as his media advisor over alleged involvement with phone hacking.

However, the 46-year-old told the Old Bailey he had not spoken to the Prime Minister since being arrested in 2011.

Coulson denies a charge of conspiracy to intercept communications and two of making corrupt payments.

He resigned as News of the World editor in 2007 after the conviction of former royal editor Clive Goodman for hacking.

The father-of-three then joined Mr Cameron's media team until January 2011.

Taking to the witness box for the first time, he said: "My family and I spent a weekend with him (Mr Cameron) in the spring after I left. I have not spoken to him since."

The invitation came before he left his Downing Street job, Coulson confirmed. He also spoke about his affair with Rebekah Brooks - his boss after joining the paper as deputy editor in 2000.

Their affair began in 1998 but was not continual.

"There were very long periods - very long periods - where the relationship was what it should have been," Coulson told the court.

"But I don't want to minimise it or excuse it. It was wrong and it shouldn't have happened and I take my full share of responsibility for the pain it has caused other people, not least my wife."

Both Brooks and Coulson are accused of conspiring to hack phones - but Coulson denied their relationship involved him "breaching professional standards or rules".

Coulson, who is still married, succeeded Brooks as editor of the now-defunct tabloid in 2003.

He was asked about managing editor Stuart Kuttner, who also denies conspiring to hack phones, and described his former colleague as a "thoroughly decent man" and an "incredibly experienced professional journalist".

The court heard about 2005-06 budget proposals, which were sent by Kuttner to Coulson and included a halving of hacker Glenn Mulcaire's £105,000 annual contract, listed under his company Nine Consultancy for "special inquiries".

Coulson denied any knowledge of Mulcaire as a private detective.

"I assumed the description special inquiries meant finding people, looking for people, possibly surveillance in the main and that Nine Consultancy was part of that process," he said.

"It was not an area of the News of the World I was particularly interested in."

Asked about the figure paid to Mulcaire's company, Coulson added: "I would not suggest that £100,000 is not a lot of money but in the context of a £32m budget it's not a massive sum.

"We paid double that, I think, to the astrologer."

Coulson was asked about a £22,000 budget item called "flowers and Oddbins".

There were laughs in court when he replied: "I think it's the flowers and alcohol."

The trial was adjourned until Tuesday.