Shadow minister Lisa Nandy said politicians should not try to ‘out’ the BBC presenter at the centre of the scandal.
The Labour frontbencher acknowledged there would be less risk of people speculating about other personalities if the individual identified himself, but said that is ‘a matter for the individual concerned’.
She told Sky News: ‘I don’t think it’s right for politicians to start trying to out an individual. I don’t think it’s helpful for the public to be speculating about, either.
‘It’s a question for the individual concerned, it’s not a matter for me… It is hurting others but what’s hurting others most of all is the constant speculation about the identity.
‘There’s a number of people who have ended up in the firing line over the weekend. I just urge people to stop doing that.’
Presenter Kay Burley suggested ‘an easy way to fix that’ is for the individual to come forward, to which Ms Nandy responded: ‘That’s true, but it is a question for the individual concerned.’