Millionaire MP John Hemming has issued a £300,000 writ against Birmingham social services for allegedly harassing his partner and newborn baby.

Mr Hemming, the Liberal Democrat MP for Yardley, claims the subsequent stress suffered by his girlfriend, Birmingham city councillor Emily Cox, meant she was hospitalised while heavily pregnant.

The Lib Dem Yardley MP said the harassment centred on a threat to put his newborn baby Isabel onto an at risk register, which was later withdrawn. He claimed his 30-year-old partner was even questioned by social services workers as she went into labour in October.

In the writ lodged at the High Court, he said the family had effectively been "defamed, tortured and assaulted" by social services and they had spent time which "could have been spent earning" dealing with the issues raised.

Mr Hemming said yesterday: "We are not happy with what happened. We've got a row going on with the council that will be resolved by legal process."

Mr Hemming is married to Christine, aged 46 and owned up to the extramarital affair when it was revealed Miss Cox was expecting his baby. Social workers became involved after a conversation Emily had with her GP.

Mr Hemming has previously compared staff who interviewed them to acting "like the Gestapo" claiming they acted as though they were "a law unto themselves".

In the writ, he says their actions amounted to psychological "assault" and said the stress caused resulted in a three-day stay in hospital for Miss Cox during the final stages of her pregnancy.

Mr Hemming, in the writ, says their human rights had been breached and calls for the individual social workers concerned to pay part of the £300,000 he is claiming.

A spokesman for Birmingham City Council last night said: "The local authority took careful and considered actions as required by the law to investigate concerns about the welfare of a child.

"Birmingham City Council is confident of all the actions taken alongside police and health colleagues and will be vigorously defending the matter and its staff who at all times acted within the area child protection committee procedures and the law."