The Speaker has granted a rare emergency Commons debate on Wednesday into calls for a public inquiry into phone hacking by News International journalists, and a potential cover up by its senior executives.
A day after the Guardian revealed the News of the World illegally targeted the missing schoolgirl Milly Dowler and her family following her disappearance in 2002, the first emergency debate to be granted since November 2008 was given the go-ahead.
The debate – starting after prime minister's questions and a statement by the PM about his visit to Afghanistan – will end with a call by Labour for a public inquiry.
Ministers present in the Commons chamber opposed the emergency debate but, in what will be seen as another show of force by the Speaker John Bercow, he accepted arguments in favour put by Labour MP Chris Bryant.
Large numbers of Labour MPs stood up to support Bryant's call, along with a smattering of Liberal Democrats and some Tory backbenchers such as Zac Goldsmith and Bill Cash.
Labour is undecided about whether or not to put forward a substantive motion calling for a public inquiry that could be subject to a vote or amendment. Instead, they could try to flush out Conservative party support for News International by showing its MPs are objecting to the principle of setting up an inquiry after the police investigation is complete.
The prime minister's spokesman was unable to say whether David Cameron would support calls for a public inquiry after the police investigation was complete, explaining that he was returning from Afghanistan.
The coalition benches were trying to hold the line on Tuesday that they were not ruling out a public inquiry, but felt nothing should stand in the way of the police investigation.
Calling for the emergency debate, Bryant said those responsible at the News of the World should be "truly ashamed", and that the newspaper could no longer "pretend that this comes as a massive surprise to them", having repeatedly lied over the extent of phone hacking.
He claimed the News of the World stood accused of "playing God with a family's emotions" in the case of murdered schoolgirl Milly Dowler, who had her voicemails accessed and deleted after she disappeared in March 2002.