The Metropolitan Police holds more than 2,000 records relating to journalists and photographers on a confidential anti-extemist database, it has been reported today.

The records are held by the National Domestic Extremism and Disorder Intelligence Unit, and the figure of 2,000 was released by the Met under the Freedom of Information Act.

Press Gazette has been told by one well placed source that the Met also holds files on journalists who write about police issues.