Supreme Court nominee insists he will be independent of Trump

Judge Neil Gorsuch, Donald Trump's nominee to fill a vacancy on the Supreme Court, has told the Senate Judiciary Committee he would have refused the job if the president had asked him to overturn the landmark Roe v Wade ruling that granted American women the right to have abortions.

The conservative judge told Republican Senator Lindsey Graham: "I would have walked out the door."

Judge Gorsuch is facing questions from senators as part of the process to confirm his appointment to the Supreme Court. The vacancy has been left unfilled for over a year following the death of conservative judge Antonin Scalia.