William Wragg is set to step down at the next election, but some are calling for him to step down now. Photo: PA
Conservative An MP victim of the Westminster entrapment scandal has been defended by the Chancellor, who called his apology “courageous and rude”.
William Wragg admitted on Thursday night that he passed on the phone numbers of colleagues to a man he met on the gay dating app Grindr, to whom he sent intimate photographs of himself.
These colleagues, including several MPs, to their staff and a political journalist, were later sent flirtatious messages and, in some cases, explicit photographs from senders using the aliases “Charlie” or “Abi.”
Chancellor Jeremy Hunt told broadcasters on Friday morning: “The events of the last few days have become a serious cause for concern.”
“The MP involved has made a bold and frank apology. But the lesson for all MPs is that they need to be very careful when it comes to cybersecurity, and in fact it's a lesson for members of the public too, because it's something we all have to deal with in our daily lives.” /p>
Wragg, 36, said he was “humbled” and apologized for his “weakness [that] hurt other people.”
“People make mistakes”
Gareth Davies, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, described the events as “extremely worrying” but also defended Mr Wragg.
He told Times Radio on Friday morning: “Obviously this is very worrying and very serious. Will realized the seriousness of the situation and apologized.
“Of course people make mistakes. But the fact that he apologized is, of course, correct.”
He added: “I think anyone who is in a position where they feel they've been compromised in the way Will described is quite worrying and I think if you feel like you've been blackmailed or put in that difficult position, < /p>
Police confirmed on Thursday that an investigation had been launched into “malicious messages” after “a number of unsolicited messages were sent to a Leicestershire MP last month” – believed to be linked to a suspected spear-phishing attack.
Spear phishing is a term that refers to a targeted cyber attack on one or more victims in order to trick them into disclosing sensitive information.
'He felt he was in a very difficult position'
At least 12 people working in and around parliament, including a sitting minister, were attacked amid fears that a hostile state could be responsible.
< p>When asked whether Mr Wragg should be sanctioned by the Conservative Party for his role in the scandal, Mr Davies did not answer, only saying it was a “party matter”.
“He apologised, he apologized fairly and he made it clear that he felt he was in a very difficult position,” he added.
In November 2022, Wragg announced he would not stand in the next general election, but Questions have been raised over whether he should resign following the revelations.
Asked whether he should do so and remain a Conservative MP, Mr Davies said: “He continues to be a Conservative MP. and it is right that there is an investigation into what happened. He rightly apologized.”
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