600 rape threats in one night: the daily reality of abuse faced by MPs

As Ann Widdecombe’s death raises concerns over security, politicians describe the threats and aggression they have faced and the anxiety it causes Jess Phillips has received so many death threats she has to remind herself not to be blase. One night she received more than 600 rape threats. In 2019, a man forced his way into her office. The same year a white supremacist sent her a picture of Jo Cox, her friend and fellow Labour MP who was murdered in 2016, accompanied with the message: “I will have you dealt with.” “This is not academic to me; it is something I face every day,” says the MP for Birmingham Yardley. “You learn to cope with it, but it does cause terrible anxiety. For me, I feel guilty about the people who work for me, my kids, my family.” The security and safety of all MPs – and the very real threats they face – has come back into sharp focus this week after it emerged that counter-terrorism police were taking over the investigation into Ann Widdecombe’s death. In recent days parliamentarians have spoken about the impact of threats on their lives. Nigel Farage revealed he is receiving more than 300 threats a month, with Reform UK recording 1,577 threats against their lea