political reporter,London(wp):
Labour MP for Rochdale, Simon Danczuk and Sophena Houlihan
Labour MP Simon Danczuk has been sexting a 17-year-old student telling her she was "cheeky" and that he wanted to "spank" her
Simon Danczuk MP has been suspended by the
Labour party after he allegedly sent messages to a teenager asking her
in one of them if she wanted him to spank her.
The 49-year-old allegedly sexted the 17-year-old girl in July after splitting up from his wife 'selfie queen' Karen Danczuk.
The pair contacted each other over a period of months after Sophena
Houlihan, now 18, contacted him about a job in his constituency office.
The anti-child abuse campaigner then sent the student a number of flirty messages, telling her she made him "horny".
A Labour source said that the party’s whip had been removed from Mr Danczuk, which means that he will no longer sit as a Labour MP in the Commons.
Mr Danczuk, a long time critic of party leader Jeremy Corbyn, now faces an immediate investigation by the party's ruling National Executive Committee.
A Labour Party spokesman said: “The General Secretary of the Labour Party has today suspended Simon Danczuk's membership of the Party, pending an investigation into allegations published in the media today.
"A full investigation will now take place under the authority of the National Executive Committee, which will be responsible for determining any further action."
Mr Danczuk said on Twitter: "Today's Sun story, while not entirely accurate, refers to an extremely low point in my life."
He added: "My behaviour was inappropriate & I apologise unreservedly to everyone I've let down. I was stupid & there's no fool like an old fool."
Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn denied that Mr Danczuk’s suspension was linked to his previous trenchant criticisms of the Labour leader.
Mr Corbyn, who is visiting flood victims in York, told The Telegraph: “It is today's incident, nothing else. Simon has had his membership of the party suspended. He will now be investigated by the national executive.
“The decision was made this morning. The reasons are his conduct, which will now be investigated. I don't want to say any more than that because I don't want to prejudice the independent investigation.”
Miss Houlihan told the Sun: "When I first got in touch I never expected the messages to get so graphic. At the time I played along with it, but now I feel like he duped me.
"I enjoyed the attention. There is something about him that I was attracted to."
She said she had hoped for a career in politics and was in "awe" of him.
Miss Houlihan, of Rochdale, claims she posted a picture of herself in a dress on Instagram and he messaged her telling her she "looked great", days later she claims he asked her to send him a picture of her and she sent one of herself in a revealing body suit.
He sent messages telling her she was "cheeky" and that he wanted to "spank" her.
The revelations come days after his new partner Claire Hamilton, a Labour concillor in Leyland, ended their relationship on Twitter.
She told the paper: "I have no idea how many women he's been messaging on Twitter. I would not be surprised if it was a lot more."
Detectives from Greater Manchester Police have investigated the case to ensure the student was not being "harassed".
A spokesperson said: "On 29 December 2015, Greater Manchester Police received a report from a member of the public that a man from the Rochdale area had been communicating inappropriately with a teenage girl.
"This matter was looked into and it has been determined that no offences have been committed."
A source close to the MP told the paper the pair are "two consenting adults".
His relationship with Miss Hamilton ended just hours after the couple were criticised for a series of selfies while constituents struggled to cope with floods.
He had faced a Twitter backlash after Miss Hamilton tweeted about going for a "romantic" Boxing Day curry with the MP.
A Labour source said that the party’s whip had been removed from Mr Danczuk, which means that he will no longer sit as a Labour MP in the Commons.
Mr Danczuk, a long time critic of party leader Jeremy Corbyn, now faces an immediate investigation by the party's ruling National Executive Committee.
A Labour Party spokesman said: “The General Secretary of the Labour Party has today suspended Simon Danczuk's membership of the Party, pending an investigation into allegations published in the media today.
"A full investigation will now take place under the authority of the National Executive Committee, which will be responsible for determining any further action."
Mr Danczuk said on Twitter: "Today's Sun story, while not entirely accurate, refers to an extremely low point in my life."
He added: "My behaviour was inappropriate & I apologise unreservedly to everyone I've let down. I was stupid & there's no fool like an old fool."
Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn denied that Mr Danczuk’s suspension was linked to his previous trenchant criticisms of the Labour leader.
Mr Corbyn, who is visiting flood victims in York, told The Telegraph: “It is today's incident, nothing else. Simon has had his membership of the party suspended. He will now be investigated by the national executive.
“The decision was made this morning. The reasons are his conduct, which will now be investigated. I don't want to say any more than that because I don't want to prejudice the independent investigation.”
Miss Houlihan told the Sun: "When I first got in touch I never expected the messages to get so graphic. At the time I played along with it, but now I feel like he duped me.
"I enjoyed the attention. There is something about him that I was attracted to."
She said she had hoped for a career in politics and was in "awe" of him.
Miss Houlihan, of Rochdale, claims she posted a picture of herself in a dress on Instagram and he messaged her telling her she "looked great", days later she claims he asked her to send him a picture of her and she sent one of herself in a revealing body suit.
He sent messages telling her she was "cheeky" and that he wanted to "spank" her.
The revelations come days after his new partner Claire Hamilton, a Labour concillor in Leyland, ended their relationship on Twitter.
She told the paper: "I have no idea how many women he's been messaging on Twitter. I would not be surprised if it was a lot more."
Detectives from Greater Manchester Police have investigated the case to ensure the student was not being "harassed".
A spokesperson said: "On 29 December 2015, Greater Manchester Police received a report from a member of the public that a man from the Rochdale area had been communicating inappropriately with a teenage girl.
"This matter was looked into and it has been determined that no offences have been committed."
A source close to the MP told the paper the pair are "two consenting adults".
His relationship with Miss Hamilton ended just hours after the couple were criticised for a series of selfies while constituents struggled to cope with floods.
He had faced a Twitter backlash after Miss Hamilton tweeted about going for a "romantic" Boxing Day curry with the MP.
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