EX-MP admits child sex vid on computer

Eric Joyce, 59, told he could get jail term

FORMER MP Eric Joyce yesterday admitted having child pornography of the most serious kind on his computer.

Joyce, 59, had a 51-second clip involved several children of ages ranging from 12 months to seven years, a court heard.

The former Army major pleaded guilty to one charge of making an indecent photograph of a child in a Category A film between 2013 and 2018.

Ipswich crown court heard that he received the video in a spam email but admitted knowing about it.

His lawyer Mark Shelley said the video was synced on to a Macbook Air computer when Joyce upgraded his laptop.

Joyce, who quit the Labour Party in 2012 after headbutting a Tory rival in a House of Commons bar, also searched for indecent images online while having issues with alcohol. Judge Emma Peters said: “At the time, he was drinking heavily but he has since undergone work with the Lucy Faithfull Foundation and seen a psychotherapist.”

She told him he could be jailed when sentenced next month.

She said she was making “no promises”, adding: “It’s going to be a question of whether it’s immediate or suspended.” Joyce, of Worlingworth, Suffolk, was the Labour MP for Falkirk when he attacked Stuart Andrew during the bar brawl in February 2012.

He was later fined £3,000 and given a 12-month community order after admitting four counts of assault.

Joyce, who became an independent but left parliament before the 2015 election, was told to sign the sex offender register.

He has said he will release a statement when proceedings are concluded.

An NSPCC spokesman said: “Within horrendous content like this are young victims who will take a very long time to recover.

“Tech firms must step up to help law enforcement stamp out this online trade.”

FOR NSPCC CHILDREN’S CHARITY