Times editor James Harding resigns

The editor of the Times, James Harding, has resigned saying that it has been made clear to him that News Corporation would like to appoint a new editor.

“I have agreed to stand down,” Harding said in a speech delivered to staff this afternoon. “I called Rupert [Murdoch] this morning to offer my resignation and he accepted it.”

Speaking about his achievements as editor, he said: “Where we have moved the position of the paper – on the deficit, gay marriage, industrial policy, climate change – I hope even the readers who don’t agree with our judgment will respect our thinking.

“In uniquely difficult circumstances, I hope we have covered the story that has swirled around us with the integrity and independence that readers of the Times expect of us.”

Harding, who was appointed as editor five years ago, was the youngest to ever serve on Murdoch’s daily. It is understood he will leave at the end of the year, saying a new editor will be appointed in due course.

“We have pioneered a revolution in digital,” he added in his resignation speech. “I hope [that] will help safeguard the future of newspapers beyond print. We have cut the editorial budget, but expanded what we do. Our coverage of the Jubilee and the Olympics was outstanding. And, judging by our sales figures for those amazing days – indeed, on balance, throughout the year – readers thought so, too.”