UK prime minister's media chief quits after phone hacking row

The British prime minister's communications chief Andy Coulson resigned on Friday, as prosecutors stepped up their inquiries into illegal phone hacking at a tabloid newspaper when he was editor.

"We confirm that Andy Coulson has resigned," an official in Prime Minister David Cameron's office said. Coulson was a key part of Cameron's inner circle after joining the Conservative leader's team when in opposition in 2007.