Witney MP Shaun Woodward has been subjected to a brutal personal onslaught after defecting to Labour, write Pat Fleming and Karen Rosine.

A series of articles branding him as a prominent activist for homosexual rights in the national press was followed today by lurid accounts of his brother's sex change to a woman.

An outraged Mr Woodward said today that the root of the attacks lay within the Tory party.

"We now have a Tory party that actually thinks to peddle discrimination, prejudice, fear and hatred is the way to deal in politics. "If we in 1999, in our society, think that asking people questions about their gender, their race, their sexuality is a decent thing to do, then we have learned nothing.

"This sort of delving around in order to muck-rake is the hallmark of a nasty society and sadly for me it was one of the reasons why I had to leave the Tory party." he said.

The former Tory MP for Witney, Lord Hurd, said: "The leadership must find a way to keep these doors open for people who have anxieties about issues like Europe and homosexual rights. If everyone who shares Shaun Woodward's concerns left, then the party would never be elected." Shaun Woodward today said he had "no idea" what the future holds after his shock defection to New Labour - but vowed he would not let down his constituents.

Mr Woodward rocked Tory leader William Hague on Saturday when he announced he was quitting the party and defecting to New Labour because he could no longer tolerate the increasing right-wing nature of the Tory party.

The decision was welcomed by both Prime Minister Tony Blair and Home Secretary Jack Straw.

Mr Woodward has been lambasted by Mr Hague, who has branded the move blatant "careerism", and called for him to resign his seat and fight a by-election. Despite reports that he is to be rewarded with a position at the heart of Mr Blair's Government, Mr Woodward said no deals had been struck and he had no "detailed plans".

He said he was "absolutely not" going to resign his seat.

Talking to the Oxford Mail, Mr Woodward, who lives at Sarsden House, Chipping Norton, said: "I have got no idea what my political future will be.

"What I want to do is go away and have some time to reflect and think about it.

"I want to get back to my constituency and continue to work hard for my constituents - I won't let them down." Mr Woodward said his wife Camilla, elder daughter of the supermarket baron Sir Timothy Sainsbury, had supported him throughout - as did her family.

He said Camilla had now also changed her political alliance.

Mr Woodward vehemently denied the charges of careerism. He said: "If I wanted to be assisted in my career and that was why I was in politics, then I could have stayed in the Tory party.

"I could have simply pedalled the rhetoric I did not believe."

Story date: Monday 20 December

Converted for the new archive on 30 June 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.