Eric Joyce, Scottish soldier and politician
Eric Stuart Joyce (born 13 October 1960) is a British politician, former military officer and convicted child sex offender. A former member of the Labour Party, he was Member of Parliament (MP) for Falkirk, formerly Falkirk West, from 2000 to 2015.
Joining the army in his teens, Joyce served as a private in the Black Watch before attending the University of Stirling and subsequently receiving a commission in the Royal Army Educational Corps. He resigned from the army under threat of discharge in 1999 at the rank of major after being found to have broken Queen's Regulations. He then worked as the Public Affairs Officer at the Commission for Racial Equality (Scotland).
Joyce was first elected to the British House of Commons in the 2000 Falkirk West by-election. From 2003, Joyce served as a Parliamentary Private Secretary (PPS) to several UK government ministers. He resigned as the PPS to Bob Ainsworth on 3 September 2009, citing concerns over the war in Afghanistan. He served as Shadow Minister for Northern Ireland under Ed Miliband from June to November 2010.
Joyce was arrested five times during his last five years as an MP, most notably in February 2012 on suspicion of assault after an incident in the Houses of Parliament. This led to his immediate suspension from the Labour Party, before pleading guilty to all charges and resigning from the party the following month. He continued representing his constituency as an independent until retiring at the 2015 general election. On 7 July 2020, Joyce pleaded guilty at Ipswich Crown Court to making a Category-A indecent film of a child. On 7 August 2020, he was given a suspended prison sentence.