CONVICTED sex offender John Cronin, who viciously attacked a Tory party worker known as Judy in her home after masquerading as a priest, is being thwarted in his attempts to seek treatment, it was claimed yesterday by his family.

His father, Mr Michael Cronin, who recently was the victim of an attack in his home town of Tranent in East Lothian, said: ''Doors have been slammed against him.''

Mr Cronin, 54, who made his comments on a phone-in programme on Radio Forth, also appealed for his family to be allowed to get on with their lives.

''There's nothing I can say to Judy that will undo what has been done. My family has never condoned what John has done, never did and never will.''

John Cronin was released from a Dublin prison last week after serving a sentence for stealing #1200 of collection money from a priest's home. It is believed he secretly returned to Tranent where locals have voiced concern about his presence. His present whereabouts are unknown.

An Irish MP later called on social services in Scotland to offer help to Cronin, whose crime against Judy sent waves of revulsion through the Tranent community.

His father denied there was reluctance on behalf of his son, jailed for six years for the brutal attack that provoked a national debate on the nature of sentencing policy, to get treatment.

''John is already in the process of seeking help and I am helping him to do it. John has paid his time, he's paid the price for his crime.''

Mr Cronin told the ''Dial David Johnston'' programme nobody could give a guarantee about his son's conduct.

He accepted in answer to questioning that people were genuinely frightened but he criticised the media's treatment of his son. ''My family and I are terrified to pick up the paper'', he declared.

Asked what he could say to people fearful that his son might come and live among them or commit a horrific crime of the kind he had, Mr Cronin replied: ''I am willing to give my son a chance.''

Responding to the statement ''but he's your son, not our son'', Mr Cronin said: ''Well then, if you adopt that attitude you might as well take a gun out and shoot him.'' Told there were likely to be many people who would like to do that, he responded: ''There probably is.

''I can assure you he's getting medical treatment and he will be helped. All he needs is the opportunity to go and get that help.''

Asked if his son was finding it difficult to get the help he needed, Mr Cronin replied: ''Yes, because most doors are slammed against him.''

Mr Ray Wyre, a sexual crimes consultant, said he had worked with sex offenders in the past who had said nobody had helped or cared for them.

''We wouldn't want that happening in this case. I can only hope there are people in Scotland who can take him on and actually work with him.''

He said he could understand the pyschiatric profession was not necessarily seeking to have on their books those people who were very dangerous.

''But I'm afraid if they don't and there's no criminal sanction then it is the community who pay the price of our inability to work with these people.''