Who is William Wragg? The Tory MP at centre of 'sexting scam' scandal
Controversy has arisen surrounding Senior Conservative MP William Wragg, who has confessed to divulging the personal phone numbers of his fellow politicians to an individual he encountered on a dating application.
In the year 2015, when he was only 27 years old, he became a Member of Parliament for Hazel Grove, which is located in Greater Manchester.
At the age of 36, he has declared his plan to retire as a Member of Parliament following the upcoming election. He indicated that he has spent his youth in politics and desires some time away from it.
Live Politics: A member of the Conservative Party who acknowledged giving out information about other MPs to a user of a dating app has been described as somewhat insensitive.
Prior to joining Westminster, Mr. Wragg worked as an elementary school teacher, and also served as a local council member for Stockport Council from 2011 to 2015.
He won the seat from the Liberal Democrats and, as a result, became the initial Conservative MP to serve the district since 1997.
Ever since he was elected, he has made tremendous progress and currently heads the Commons Public Administration and Constitutional Affairs Committee (PACAC), which is responsible for scrutinizing civil service matters and constitutional concerns.
Additionally, he holds the position of deputy chair for the 1922 committee, which is a group consisting of rebellious MPs who convene every week to express their opinions. Furthermore, they have recently been responsible for supervising elections for leadership positions and votes of confidence.
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But, it could be said that Mr. Wragg is most recognized for being a source of irritation for the four leaders he has worked for.
During the EU Referendum, he worked to support Brexit. After David Cameron stepped down, he supported Andrea Leadsom in the bid for Tory leader against Theresa May, but ultimately, May won.
When Mrs. May was the Prime Minister, this person was among the more than 100 individuals who rebelled by voting against the Withdrawal Agreement with the European Union.
In January 2022, this British man was amongst the initial Conservative Members of Parliament to demand Boris Johnson's resignation due to the partygate controversy. He asserted that when Johnson was the Tory leader, officials from the government had attempted to coerce MPs who were speaking out against him.
Mr. Wragg has requested that Ms. Truss step down from her position following her disastrous mini-budget. He stated that he cannot confidently urge his constituents to support their political party when he speaks to them face-to-face.
A lot of people know Mr Wragg for being honest about his mental wellbeing. In the middle of 2022, he took some days off to get better from feeling really sad. He talked on social media about having felt this way for a long time and that it was really strong at the moment.
He expressed his wish to come back feeling revitalized and having a greater appreciation for both life and himself.
Discover More: The Members of Parliament who have declared their intent to step down by the upcoming national election.
Several Members of Parliament empathized with Mr. Wragg's confession of being part of a purported "sexual messaging fraud." Chancellor Jeremy Hunt commended him for his "brave and sincere" apology.
On Thursday, Mr. Wragg informed The Times that he was "manipulated" into providing personal phone numbers of his coworkers to a man he connected with on a gay dating application. This occurred after he had exchanged intimate photographs of himself with the individual.
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He apologized for his "vulnerability" that led to harm for others.
According to a new article in The Times, Mr Wragg will not be stripped of his party membership, allowing him to continue serving as a Conservative Member of Parliament in the House of Commons until the upcoming election. However, he may opt to step down before the election due to the controversy surrounding him.
It was announced that MPs had been receiving unwanted messages from two anonymous WhatsApp users, following numerous reports.
Last Friday, the Metropolitan Police established communication with Leicestershire Police and Parliamentary Security after reports of unsolicited messages sent to members of parliament. Their concern is that more MPs and their staff might also be subjected to blackmail.