Paparazzi will not give evidence at Diana’s inquest

THE PAPARAZZI who pursued Princess Diana to the scene of her death will not give evidence at her inquest, it was confirmed last night.

The French authorities have refused to force the crucial witnesses to tell their side of the story despite a high-level cross-channel appeal.

Coroner Lord Justice Scott Baker is powerless to compel the photographers to do so and told the inquest there was a risk of a legal challenge in France were they made to attend.

Although the inquest heard that the court had access to all of the paparazzi past statements, the coroner has yet to publicly rule on whether they can be admitted.

Lord Justice Scott Baker said: “Any attempt to force the paparazzi to attend would be likely to lead to a real risk of the French equivalent of judicial review.”

The paparazzi have refused to take part with their lawyers arguing they have nothing new to add.

As the case continued at the High Court in London, the jury also heard how British experts are convinced the princess’s car did collide with a white Fiat Uno in the Pont de l’Alma tunnel.

Scotland Yard senior collision investigator Anthony Read also told the jury he believed the crash would have been “survivable” for Diana and Dodi Fayed had they been wearing seatbelts and observing the 50kph limit.

He added it would have been “virtually impossible” for someone trying to cause such a crash deliberately to be sure of success.