MP wins damages from McBride

A Tory MP has received damages from one of Gordon Brown's former spin doctors after he targeted her as part of the "smear emails" scandal.

Nadine Dorries is believed to have been paid damages of £1,000 by Damian McBride, who had been one of the Prime Minister's closest advisers. He resigned following his admission that he had composed emails designed to smear Tory rivals.

The Mid Bedfordshire MP said that she hoped Mr McBride's decision to settle the case and pay her £2,500 legal costs would strengthen her hand in bringing legal action against No 10 itself. She added that she hoped the victory would stop people believing there was "no smoke without fire" when they heard rumours about her.

Mr McBride left No 10 in April after it emerged he had invented stories about several Tory figures, including David Cameron, George Osborne and his wife, and Ms Dorries, emailing the smears to the former Labour adviser Derek Draper.

The pair had discussed plans to use the stories on a left-wing political gossip website called RedRag, though they were never actually published. "It was important for me that he admitted guilt," Ms Dorries said. "I have lived with the worry that people would think there was no smoke without fire. It was vitally important for me to clear my name. What he paid really was not the issue. It is important people know what a cesspit No 10 has turned into."