Hague speaks about internet claims

William Hague has said that he and his wife decided to go public with intimate details about their private life because they had "had enough" of untrue allegations circulating on the internet.

The Foreign Secretary shocked Westminster on Wednesday releasing a frank statement in which he denied having had an "improper" relationship with a male aide and insisting his marriage was secure.

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

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

Downing Street confirmed on Thursday morning that Mr Hague continued to enjoy the "100 per cent support" of Prime Minister David Cameron.

The Foreign Secretary tried to get back to work as normal, holding talks with German opposite number Guido Westerwelle.

But he faced a series of questions about his private life as he and Mr Westerwelle staged a press conference at the Foreign Office.

Mr Hague insisted he had no more to add to his statement yesterday, but gave an insight into why he and Ffion 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."