News International chief executive Rebekah Brooks will attend a parliamentary select committee to take questions on the phone hacking scandal next week, it was confirmed this morning.
Rupert Murdoch, the News Corp chairman, has indicated he will not attend the hearing on Tuesday, but said he was "fully prepared to give evidence" to the upcoming judge-led inquiry, while his son James has said he is available to appear on August 10.
The Commons Media Committee has said that date is "not sufficient" and issued a summons for the Murdochs, however it is not clear whether they hold power over foreign nationals.
In a statement it said the committee believed that "all three should appear to account for the behaviour of News International and for previous statements made to the Committee in Parliament, now acknowledged to be false."
"Accordingly, the committee has this morning decided to summon Rupert Murdoch and James Murdoch to appear before the Select Committee in parliament at 2.30pm on Tuesday 19 July 2011."
The development comes as Neil Wallis, former executive editor of News of the World, was arrested in connection to an investigation into allegations of phone hacking at News International.
Scotland Yard said the 60-year-old, who served as a deputy under former editor Andy Coulson, was taken for questioning at a local police station on suspicion of conspiring to intercept communications.
He was held at his home by detectives from Operation Weeting, the Scotland Yard investigation into mobile interceptions by the Sunday tabloid, the Press Association reported.
Coulson, the former chief media adviser to David Cameron, was arrested last week over alleged phone hacking and illegal payments to police, and released on bail until October.
Rupert Murdoch bowed to public and political pressure on Wednesday over the scandal, giving up his £8.7bn bid for the remaining 61 per cent of BSkyB.