EX-MP FACES JAIL FOR CHILD ABUSE VIDEO
Shamed Joyce admits possessing horrific film clip
DISGRACED former shadow minister Eric Joyce is facing jail after yesterday admitting to having a child abuse film on his computer.
the former labour MP for Falkirk – who has a string of convictions and drunkenly headbutted a tory politician in 2012 – had footage featuring several children between the ages of 12 months and seven years.
the 51-second clip was classed by a judge as ‘category A’ – the most serious level for indecent images.
Perth-born Joyce, 59, admitted he had searched for child abuse images on the internet, claiming he had been ‘drinking heavily’ at the time.
He told a court the film had been sent to him in a spam email, but confirmed he was aware of the footage.
He pleaded guilty to making an indecent image of a child after it was transferred between computers when
he ‘synced’ devices. Yesterday, at Ipswich Crown Court in Suffolk, Judge Emma Peters adjourned the case for reports but told Joyce she was making ‘no promises’ about his potential punishment.
She warned Joyce this was a ‘serious offence’ – which crosses the custody threshold, with jail terms starting at one year – and said such images ‘fuel the abuse of children’.
The judge added: ‘It’s going to be a question of whether it [sentence] is immediate or suspended.’
Joyce, who was granted bail, was ordered to sign the sex offenders’ register. How long he remains on this will depend on his sentence.
The Scot arrived at court in a smart blue suit and tie and had to confirm he had no coronavirus symptoms before security staff allowed him inside.
During the short hearing he spoke only to confirm his name, date of birth and nationality and to plead guilty to the offence, which took place between August 2013 and November 2018.
Prosecutor Michael Proctor said the Crown had no evidence to
‘Fuels the abuse of children’
challenge the defendant’s claim he received the video in an email. But he said Joyce had accepted in his plea that he had carried out internet searches for ‘all categories’ of indecent images of children.
Judge Peters was told that, at the time of the offence, Joyce was ‘drinking heavily’ but had since undergone work with the Lucy Faithfull Foundation, a UK-wide anti-child sex abuse charity, and had seen a psychotherapist.
Joyce, of Worlingworth, Suffolk, was not accompanied to court.
It was not clear last night whether he was still in a relationship with his long-term partner, author and journalist India Knight, 54.
Joyce obtained a BA in religious studies from Stirling University before attending the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst.
He joined the Army in 1977 and served for 21 years, rising to the rank of major, before becoming the MP for Falkirk West in 2000.
In February 2012, Joyce went ‘berserk’ in the Commons’ Strangers’ Bar. He later admitted assault and Westminster magistrates fined him £3,000, ordered him to pay £1,400 compensation and imposed a 12-month community order.
Joyce lashed out after a group glanced over when his friend, amateur opera singer Stuart Niven, began singing. Tory MP Andrew Percy was shoved up against a wall when he asked Joyce to sit down.
The Scot then swore at eight police officers and headbutted Tory MP Stuart Andrew. As he was dragged away, he shouted: ‘You can’t touch me, I’m an MP.’
Joyce, suspended by Labour after his arrest, resigned from the party but served as an independent MP for Falkirk until 2015.
He had resigned as shadow Northern Ireland minister in 2010 after being fined £400 and banned from driving for a year for refusing to give police a breath sample.
In 2014 he admitted a breach of the peace following an altercation with staff at Edinburgh Airport, while a year later he was found guilty of common assault after a clash with a teenager in Camden, north London. He was handed a suspended sentence.
Last night, children’s charity NSPCC Scotland said: ‘Within horrendous content like this are young victims of child sexual abuse who will take a very long time to recover from their ordeals.
‘There is a sickening online trade in this content and tech firms must step up to help law enforcement stamp it out.
‘It’s also critically important that offenders undergo all appropriate rehabilitation.’