A Scotland Yard police officer will be charged with manslaughter over the death of Ian Tomlinson at the G20 protests, Britain’s top prosecutor ruled today.

The Director of Public Prosecutions said there were grounds for Pc Simon Harwood to face a trial after reviewing an inquest jury’s unlawful killing verdict.

Pc Harwood will appear before City of Westminster Magistrates’ Court on June 20, Keir Starmer QC said.

Mr Tomlinson, a homeless 47-year-old newspaper seller, collapsed and died on the fringes of the demonstrations in central London on April 1, 2009.

The death became an international controversy after New York businessman Christopher La Jaunie handed footage he had taken of a police confrontation to the Guardian newspaper.