Ben Russell

The head of the police complaints watchdog has insisted that investigators have obtained "crucial" CCTV evidence about the death of Jean Charles de Menezes.

Nick Hardwick, chairman of the Independent Police Complaints Commission, rejected claims of a cover-up, declaring that "I have all the information that I need" to investigate the events leading to the shooting of the electrician by anti-terrorist police a month ago.

Speaking after a meeting with a Brazilian delegation in Britain to investigate the shooting, Mr Hardwick insisted that the CCTV footage from the scene of the shooting at Stockwell Underground station was "very helpful".

He refused to clarify whether cameras in the station and the train were working and caught the final moments of Mr de Menezes' life.

However, members of the Brazilian delegation revealed that some of the CCTV cameras that would have filmed Mr de Menezes being shot may have been out of order. "Apparently there are parts of the film which do not exist," said Ambassador Manoel Gomes Pereira.

Ken Livingstone yesterday attacked the "many enemies" of the Metropolitan Police Commissioner Sir Ian Blair for attempting to undermine him.

Speaking on BBC Radio 4, Mr Livingstone, the Mayor of London, heaped praise on Sir Ian, insisting that the Commissioner's reforms would help thwart any future terror strike on the capital."There are few people I have had to deal with in 30 years in public life I trust as totally as I do him," he said.