William Hague 'had enough' over rumours

Published on Thursday 2 September 2010 17:25

Foreign Secretary William Hague said his decision to deny publicly speculation about a gay affair with an aide was "not an easy thing to do".

William Hague found questions about his private life dominated his press conference at the Foreign Office yesterday with his German counterpart Picture: Getty Images

Revealing the frustration he felt, Mr Hague said he and his wife, Ffion, had "had enough" and decided to "put the record straight" about the rumours which had been circulating, particularly on internet sites.

Downing Street said Mr Hague continued to enjoy the "100 per cent support" of Prime Minister David Cameron.

In a frank statement issued on Wednesday, Mr Hague denied having had an "improper" relationship with special adviser Christopher Myers and insisted his marriage was secure.

He also revealed that his wife had suffered a number of miscarriages as they tried to start a family.

Mr Myers quit his post as special adviser, citing the pressure put on his family by media inquiries into the allegations.

In a press conference at the Foreign Office yesterday, Mr Hague said his former aide was "someone who is rather fed up of the political world, and who can blame him?".

Mr Myers said he "categorically denied" the allegations about an improper relationship with Mr Hague.

The Foreign Secretary insisted he had no more to add to his earlier statement, but gave an insight into why he and Mrs Hague had decided to go public.

"Yesterday, I made a very personal statement, which was not an easy thing to do. I am not going to expand on that today.

"My wife and I really felt we had had enough of the circulation of untrue allegations, particularly on the internet, and at some point you have to speak out about that and put the record straight."

Questions about his private life dominated the joint press conference held with Mr Hague's German counterpart, Guido Westerwelle.

Mr Hague insisted the work of the Foreign Office "had not missed a beat at any stage" despite the rumours about him.

A spokeswoman for the Prime Minister said Mr Cameron was not making any new statement on the issue, but had given the Foreign Secretary his full backing throughout.

The spokeswoman said: "We have always given William our 100 per cent support. That was the case yesterday, and it is the case today."

"The Prime Minister totally understands why William made the statement he did."

There was also support from the chairman of the Conservative Association in Mr Hague's North Yorkshire constituency of Richmond. Christopher Bourne-Arton said: "It was a very brave statement. I am only sorry it was necessary."

Mr Myers, 25, was employed by Mr Hague during the general election campaign as a constituency aide and had worked for the Foreign Secretary as a policy adviser. Mr Hague admitted "occasionally" sharing hotel rooms with him during the election.

But he added: "Neither of us would have done so if we had thought that it in any way meant or implied something else."