Phone hacking victims' lawyer Charlotte Harris was target of 'vast gossip dossier'

Charlotte Harris says she was targeted because she 'stumbled across a ream of activity that News International didn't want to come out' (Susannah Ireland)

Charlotte Harris, a lawyer, has claimed that private investigators compiled a dossier of "gossip" about her private life when she acted on behalf of victims of phone hacking.

Giving evidence to the Home Affairs Select Committee, Ms Harris said that News Corp's management and standards committee had passed some details about her surveillance to Scotland Yard. Ms Harris, a partner at Mishcon de Reya, claimed she was targeted because she had "stumbled across a ream of activity that News International didn't want to come out". She added: "The police showed me the file. It was vast compared to evidence I've seen on other people.

"It was clear [that] basically the idea of the report was to find out private information about the main lawyers who were involved in the phone-hacking litigation."

She said the dossier contained details of her "private life, political affiliations, career aspirations, how well people got on".