William Wragg, a senior Conservative MP, chairman of a Commons select committee, has admitted his involvement in a honeytrap sexting scandal targeting a minister and fellow MPs, told he handed over the personal phone numbers of colleagues to a man he met on Grindr, a gay dating app. The vice-chairman of the 1922 Committee of Tory backbenchers said that he provided the details after sending intimate pictures of himself to the user. Wragg said he was “scared” that the man ” had compromising things on me”.

Those colleagues who included several MPs, members of their staff and a political journalist – were sent unsolicited flirtatious messages from senders identifying themselves as “Charlie” or “Abi”. At least two MPs send explicit picture of themselves. The whole scandal is now the subject of a detailed investigation by Leicestershire police which has received a complaint of malicious communications against an MP. The incident was a clear case of spear phishing, a technique used to gather highly personal sensitive or compromising materials.

Wragg, 36 said: “They had compromising things on me. They wouldn’t leave me alone. They would ask for people. I gave them some numbers, not all of them. I told him to stop. He’s manipulated me and now I’ve hurt other people. I got chatting to a guy on an app and we exchanged pictures. We were meant to meet up for drinks, but then didn’t. The he started asking for numbers of people. I was worried because he had stuff on me, He gave me a WhatsApp number which doesn’t work now. I’ve hurt people by being weak. I was scared. I’m mortified. I’m so sorry my weakness has caused other people hurt” .