A former tabloid editor who became Prime Minister David Cameron's spin doctor has told Britain's media ethics inquiry that Rupert Murdoch was a hands-off owner who did not meddle in his newspapers' editorial decisions or political positions.

The former chief of Scotland Yard has told a British inquiry into media ethics that there has been too much gossiping between senior officers and members of the press.

James Murdoch's behind-the-scenes lobbying campaign spilled out into the public domain as documents detailing his close ties to the British establishment were examined by a judge-led inquiry into media ethics.