The Church of England has joined community and public broadcasting campaigners in urging the Government to uphold the prohibition on product placement in TV programmes, following commercial pressure to end it.

The historic news that the leaders of Britain's three main political parties will for the first time take part in a series of televised debates at the next general election has been mired in accusations that they have 'stitched up democracy' for their own benefit.

A legal attempt to block Britain's Channel 4 News from broadcasting a report about the death of passer-by Ian Tomlinson at the recent G20 protest in London has failed.