Victims of phone-hacking have accused the British Prime Minister David Cameron of betrayal after he rejected the recommendation of the Leveson Report on how to regulate an “outrageous” press that “had wreaked havoc with the lives of innocent people”.

After nine months of hearings on media standards, involving more than 600 witnesses, Lord Justice Brian Leveson said Britain needed a tougher form of press self-regulation, backed by legislation. Justice Leveson denied this amounted to statutory regulation, because his proposed independent watchdog would not involve politicians (or newspaper editors).