The four serving and former Mirror group journalists arrested yesterday have been widely identified as People editor James Scott, ex-Sunday Mirror chief Tina Weaver, former People editor Mark Thomas and People deputy editor Nick Buckley.

It is being treated as a separate conspiracy to the two being investigated at the now defunct News of the World newspaper and is believed it mainly concerned the Sunday Mirror newspaper in the years 2003 and 2004.

She started her career at the South West News agency before joining the People in 1989 as a reporter. In 1993 she joined the Daily Mirror and a year later left for Today.