EMBARRASSING claims about the private life of Essex MP John Whittingdale have been branded "tittle-tattle" by people close to the Cabinet minister.

Former topless model Stephanie Hudson claimed the Culture Secretary had breached security protocols while they were in a relationship - and called his constituents "oiks".

Mr Whittingdale showed her confidential papers at his constituency home and also photographed Cabinet Ministers at a private meeting in Chequers before secretly texting the image to her, she claimed in the Mail on Sunday.

But sources insisted that Ms Hudson "never had access" to government documents and said the Tory Maldon MP was entitled to a private life.

Ms Hudson told the Mail on Sunday: "The Red Box was open on his breakfast table and all the papers were strewn on the table. He would show me his work schedule and the letters when I would sit next to him.

"He was always saying this important person had been writing to him and he had to respond to so and so.

"I always felt he was trying to show he was important, you know: 'Look at me, I am big.' It would have been easy to read the papers either across the kitchen table or when he was out of the room. There was something about Ofcom written on one of them."

She also claimed the politician had referred to his constituents as "reprobate oiks".

But a spokesman for Mr Whittingdale poured scorn on the suggestion.

The spokesman said: "I've never heard him use the word 'oik' about anybody - it's not in his vocabulary.

"He doesn't regard his constituents like that in the slightest and he chose to live in Maldon.

"John has the highest regard for his Maldon constituents and always has done."

The spokesman added: "The support we have had from constituents through this has been quite overwhelming." 

Mr Whittingdale faced Labour calls to step aside from decisions about press regulation earlier this week after it emerged he had dated a sex worker. But he was backed by Downing Street and is said to have Prime Minister David Cameron's full confidence.

A source close to Mr Whittingdale said: "John is a single man. He is entitled to a private life. This is just tittle-tattle. Stephanie Hudson never had access to government papers."