Senior former MP at centre of Esther Baker rape claims strongly denies abusing child in woods

Politician says he believes he is the subject of a 'conspiracy'

Esther Baker, 32, spoke to Sky News about sexual abuse she suffered as a child (Sky News/Screen shot)

A senior former MP who has been accused of raping a young girl in a wood has emphatically denied the allegations.

Staffordshire Police said it had launched an investigation into the claims by Esther Baker, now 32, who waived her right to anonymity to speak about the alleged abuse on Sky News.

Ms Baker claimed the MP, described as a recent, high-profile political figure, as “one of the core members” of a VIP paedophile ring who would regularly abuse her in the 1980s and 1990s.

Read more: Abuse survivor claims police 'stood guard'

She told the broadcaster that she believes a Lord and judge may also have been among her abusers, and said the politician regularly made her sit on his lap and play piano, adding: “He was quite taken with that.”

Since Ms Baker came forward, another two women have spoken out to make claims about the same former MP, according to the investigative news website Exaro.

It said that unlike Ms Baker they had not yet been formally interviewed by the police.

Speaking to the Sunday Times, the former MP – who cannot be named for legal reasons – said the allegations appeared to be part of a plot and that his name had been picked “almost at random”.

He said he believed Ms Baker was being “manipulated” by a third party to make the “completely bonkers” claims, adding that he had “no connection” to the area of Staffordshire where the crimes were alleged to have taken place and was working in London at the time.

“I have already said to Staffordshire Police that I think there is a conspiracy to pervert the course of justice going on,” he said.