London: Prime Minister David Cameron says press regulation needs to be improved in Britain as he testified before a U.K. media ethics inquiry.

The judge-led inquiry was set up following revelations of phone hacking at Rupert Murdoch's News of the World tabloid. The scandal has shaken the British establishment and raised questions about whether top politicians helped to shield Murdoch from scrutiny.

Relations with Murdoch's media empire have been problematic for Cameron. The prime minister has faced criticism for the way his government handled Murdoch's bid to take full control of British Sky Broadcasting.

His ties to Murdoch have also been questioned because he hired former News of the World editor Andy Coulson as his communications chief.

Coulson has since been charged with perjury in a case touched by the hacking scandal.