Neil Parish has resigned as a Conservative MP after admitting watching pornography in the House of Commons in a “moment of madness”.
Speaking to BBC South West, the 65-year-old – who represented Tiverton and Honiton in Devon – said he viewed adult material twice. He claims the first time he stumbled upon a porn website looking for tractors but the second time was “deliberate”.
“The situation was that – funnily enough it was tractors I was looking at,” he said.
“I did get into another website that had a very similar name and I watched it for a bit which I shouldn’t have done. But my crime – biggest crime – is that on another occasion I went in a second time.”
He added: “That was deliberate […] that was sitting waiting to vote on the side of the chamber.”
Allegations of an MP watching porn first emerged in a meeting with Chief Whip Chris Heaton-Harris on Tuesday, but Mr Parish was not identified as the culprit until Friday when he was suspended by the Tory party.
He initially vowed to continue as an MP but quit after acknowledging the “furore” and “damage” had caused to his family and constituency.
A spokesperson for Tiverton and Honiton Conservatives said: “We would like to take this opportunity to thank Neil Parish for his service to our communities over the past 12 years.
“We support his decision to step down as our member of parliament.”