A member of Ed Miliband's shadow cabinet has issued a plea to the media to "call off the hunt" for topless photos she posed for as a teenager.

Gloria de Piero, who was made Labour's equalities spokeswoman in last week's reshuffle, said people claiming to be acting on behalf of a national newspaper had offered "several thousand pounds" for the pictures.

The Ashfield MP - formerly a journalist - has spoken openly about the photo-shoot in the past, describing it as something she did aged 15 or 16 to get money to buy clothes.

She said: "This is part of my story and part of who I am... but this happened over 20 years ago.

"It is now time to call off the hunt for these pictures and let me get on with the job I was elected to do."