Church of England gives up stake in News Corp due to ethical concerns

MUMBAI: The Church of England, the mother church of the worldwide Anglican Communion, has decided to give up its stake in the Rupert Murdoch-owned News Corp due to ethical concerns arising out of phone-hacking scandal.

The church said it had sold its $2.9 million because it was not convinced by News Corp‘s efforts to reform its corporate governance.

The Church hold assets worth more than ?8 billion through its three national investment bodies, the Church Commissioners for England, the Church of England Pensions Board, and the CBF Church of England Funds.

"The Church of England first raised concerns with the board of News Corporation in the aftermath of the phone-hacking allegations that surfaced in July 2011," the Church of England said in a statement.

"After a year of dialogue between the company and the EIAG (the Church‘s Ethical Investment Advisory Group), the Church of England was not satisfied that News Corporation had shown, or is likely in the immediate future to show, a commitment to implement necessary corporate governance reform."

As per church investment guidelines it can‘t buy stakes in companies that provide military products or services, pornography, alcohol, gambling, tobacco, human embryonic cloning or high-interest-rate lending.

Meanwhile, the Scotland Yard has arrested a journalist and a police officer as part of a probe in the phone-hacking controversy on suspicion of conspiracy to corrupt and conspiracy to cause misconduct in a public office.

The phone hacking scandal relates to controversy at the now defunct News of the World and Sun news papers wherein journalists indulged in phone hacking, police bribery, and exercising improper influence in the pursuit of publishing stories.