SHAMED MP Simon Danczuk yesterday admitted he sent sex texts to 17-year-old
Sophena Houlihan because he was “drunk, horny and on my own”.
Danczuk, 49, in his first interview since The Sun revealed the messages, said
he was holidaying alone in Spain at the time and drinking heavily.
He added: “Younger women are my Achilles heel. My first wife was ten years
younger than me, my second wife was 17 years younger, my last girlfriend is
17 years younger.
“Some men like older women, some like younger women, some like brunettes, some
like blondes.”
Danczuk, a father of five, added: “I have a drink problem, and that is a major
contributory reason why I sent the messages.
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“I’ve seen a psychiatrist about it and he’s told me to stop drinking for six
months.
“I feel awful about what happened. I don’t know what came over me.
“I’m so embarrassed that I’ve been such an idiot. I’m sorry for letting my
family down and I’m already dreading my young sons finding out about this
when they are older.”
Danczuk, Labour MP for Rochdale, said he knew the messages were wrong the
moment he sent them but on occasions was so drunk he had no recollection of
what he had said.
He admitted telling Sophena he wanted to spank her during booze benders on
which he drank up to three bottles of wine a night.
The MP described how his life had been falling apart. And he blamed the
“stupid messages” on feeling lonely and depressed as well as a long-term
battle with booze.
Danczuk was suspended by Labour this week after The Sun revealed he had sent
lurid messages to Sophena some time after she applied for a job with him.
He said that when the performing arts student first contacted him in July on
Facebook he was reeling from his break up from ex wife Karen, 32.
He said: “Splitting up was terrible. I had moments that were very dark and
depressing and I turned to drink to help me through it.
“There was no doubt I was lonely. I don’t have a big family and there weren’t
many people I could talk to.”
Danczuk said he told Sophena, who turned 18 over Christmas, that she was free
to apply for a job — but warned she probably did not have enough experience.
He said: “I was trying to encourage her to take an interest in politics.
“We struck up an online friendship. For the first couple of months I saw it as
nothing more than a professional conversation.”
After about a month Sophena told him she was 17. Danczuk said it was “not an
issue” because messages remained about work. But he admitted he became
attracted to her over the following weeks after seeing pictures of her
online.
The messages became explicit when he took the week-long Spanish holiday in
September to write a book. Danczuk sent her a message saying they should
“meet up” — something he insists he would never have done in normal
circumstances.
He said: “I was drinking heavily out there. I would drink from seven in the
evening until two or three in the morning. I’d often drink three bottles of
wine to myself.”
It was during one of these benders he noticed a picture of Sophena in a white
body suit.
He said: “I don’t know what came over me to message her about the picture. I
was drunk.
“I told her it looked nice and she then replied, saying ‘It would look better
on your bedroom floor’.
“I knew it was a step too far but I’ve had a lot to drink and I told her I was
horny. It all got out of hand from there.”
Over the next couple of days the pair exchanged explicit messages.
Danczuk said it only happened late in the evening or into the early hours
after he had sunk a bottle of wine or two. On one occasion he asked her if
he could spank her and invited her out to join him in Spain.
In another message he asked her to meet him at the Labour Party conference the
following week.
He said: “With every message I sent I knew what I was doing was inappropriate
but I still did it.
“It was drunken bravado and I cringe at it. I never had any intentions of
meeting up with her. I’d eventually go to bed in the early hours. When I
woke I’d think ‘Who have I sent messages to and what have I said?’
“I’d read them and think ‘Goodness this just isn’t acceptable’. I had real
regrets about it.”
On one occasion Sophena tried to discuss work with a drunken Danczuk. He
replied: “Let’s get back to the sex.”
When asked about that message, he said: “That’s really quite bad isn’t it? I
can’t recall that. I’d had too much to drink.”
Danczuk said on returning to the UK he endeavoured to make sure conversations
with Sophena stayed strictly professional. He added: “I knew I had to stop
messaging her those things. She was the only person I’d done that with. I
knew it was wrong. It played on my mind.”
The following week, the MP was seen kissing Labour councillor Claire Hamilton,
32, at the conference. The pair were soon a couple.
Danczuk and Sophena exchanged a few messages after his return from Spain, then
all correspondence ended. He said: “I was quite relieved it stopped. I never
sent the girl any messages of an explicit nature when I was sober.”
But Danczuk admitted his heavy drinking continued. He said: “Claire would
regularly drink two bottles of wine a night and I got carried along with
that. I was drinking more than I wanted. I never drink before 5pm so I never
see myself as an alcoholic.
“I wasn’t happy with the amount Claire and I were drinking so I put an end to
the relationship.”
On Tuesday Claire claimed Danczuk was a womaniser and an alcoholic. Ex-wife
Karen said in June the MP had alcohol issues.
Danczuk told The Sun On Sunday he saw a psychiatrist a few months ago and
was advised to have a six-month break from alcohol.
He added: “I did around the time take a week or two out but that was it. My
drinking certainly contributed to Karen and I not being together. I think
I’ve used it as a coping mechanism.
“With the psychiatrist I also talked about sex but he didn’t think there was
an issue. I think I have a healthy sex drive.”
On Thursday Labour suspended Danczuk’s membership pending an investigation. He
apologised, saying: “There’s no fool like an old fool.”
He said he has spoken to Karen, mother of his sons Milton, seven, and Maurice,
five, about the scandal.
He added: “She takes the general view I’ve had a midlife crisis.”
Danczuk made his name spearheading a campaign to expose paedophile MP Sir
Cyril Smith and helping to bring Lord Janner to court over historic sex
abuse cases. He said: “I feel I have let down victims I worked hard to help.
I want to say sorry to them.
“I worry I’ve discredited some of the good work I’ve done for them.
“I’ve always said I’m an ordinary guy that happens to do politics. I never
pretended to be whiter than white. It’s a great privilege to represent
Rochdale people. I’ve done so much in terms of bringing justice to those who
were abused but I’m this flawed character.
“I’m very disappointed I’ve let myself get in this situation. All I can say to
Sophena is I’m very sorry if I’ve caused her distress.”