SCANDAL OF PM'S ADVISOR AND HOOKER
ONE of Tony Blair's top advisers admitted yesterday that he foolishly
invited a prostitute to his flat - but he denied they had sex.
Married Lord Mackenzie, 59, said: "I invited her round and we talked. But
there was certainly no sex. I know allegations have been made, but there is
nothing in them. I can't prove what did or did not go on.
"I know how it looks, regardless of any explanation I give. It is something
I have to live with - but it is not a hanging offence."
He revealed that when he mentioned the encounter to his wife Jean, she told
him: "There is no fool like an old fool." The couple have two grown-up
children.
Vice girl Salima Kebache, 32, who charged clients £500 a night for sex,
said Lord Mackenzie gave her a guided tour of the Commons before inviting
her to join him for a drink.
She claimed that they later had sex at his Central London flat.
She said she had got a job in the Commons sports and social club without
proper security checks.
Lord Mackenzie, who advises the Prime Minister on law and order, said he
had invited Salima to his flat just before midnight, because she was "upset".
Speaking at his £500,000 home in Shincliff, Co Durham, he said: "I did not
have sex with her. I did invite her to my flat.
"I got a call from her at 11.45pm and she said that she was upset.
"I had a few drinks with Fergus (Fergus Montgomery, an ex-Tory MP) and had
met her earlier that day and given her my number."
Salima claimed that he had fallen in love with her and offered to make her
his mistress in London. She also said that she had sex with him purely for
pleasure."
She added: "I did not charge him anything."
But Lord Mackenzie added: "I only met this woman once and there was nothing
in it. It makes it sound like a long-term affair, but that is totally false.
"I am sorry for the embarrassment it has caused my wife.
"I think taking legal action would just prolong it even further and I just
want to clear the air by explaining what happened.
"I will consider my position if people start asking me to step down, but
that is unlikely, given the trivial nature of the allegations. It is not
like Lord Archer - he is in prison."
Lord Mackenzie called for Commons security to be tightened after Salima's
revelation that she got her job without proper security checks.
Many high-ranking MPs, including Deputy Prime Minister John Prescott, are
regulars in the sports and social club. Salima met former police chief Lord
Mackenzie, whose full title is Baron Mackenzie of Framwellgate, after he
called in for a drink.
Lord Mackenzie once served with Durham police and was made a peer five
years ago. He has frequently lectured on crime and security and spoken out
against prostitution, porn and drugs.
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